SW Minnesota Today

There were 112 American Indian students enrolled in Yellow Medicine County public schools in the 2023-24 school year, 9.7% less than the previous year, according to the Minnesota Department of Education.

Data showed that Yellow Medicine County welcomed 1,258 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, American Indian students comprised 8.9% of the student body to be the third most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the six schools in the county, Yellow Medicine East Secondary School and Bert Raney Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of American Indian students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 52.

According to the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), Minnesota's fourth graders scored 241 in math, just above the national average of 237. Their reading score of 216 was on par with the U.S. average, but shows a slight decline over recent years. Eighth graders scored 284 in math and 264 in reading, both above the national averages. 

However, despite these results, both grade levels remain below pre-pandemic levels in math and reading.

As of 2024, according to Public School Review, the student-to-teacher ratio in Minnesota's public schools stands at 1:16, slightly worse than the national average of 1:15. This is part of a larger framework within Minnesota's educational system, which is the 10th largest in the United States, accommodating over 869,000 students across 2,709 public schools.

School Name	No. of American Indian Students	% of American Indian Students	Total School Enrollment
Bert Raney Elementary School	52	19.1%	272
Yellow Medicine East Secondary School	52	15.7%	331
Canby Elementary School	5	1.7%	297
Canby Secondary School	3	1%	293
E.C.H.O. Secondary School	0	0%	30
E.C.H.O. Elementary	0	0%	35