St. Cloud Sun

There were 341 multiracial students enrolled in Benton County public schools in the 2023-24 school year, 7.2% more than the previous year, according to the Minnesota Department of Education.

Data showed that Benton County welcomed 6,570 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, multiracial students comprised 5.2% of the student body to be the third most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 10 schools in the county, Pleasantview Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of multiracial students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 78.

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 Multiracial Students	% of Multiracial Students	Total School Enrollment
Pleasantview Elementary School	78	10.8%	722
ALC - Sauk Rapids	6	9.1%	66
Lincoln Elementary School	23	7.8%	295
Mississippi Heights Elementary School	60	7.3%	817
Sauk Rapids-Rice Senior High School	77	5.9%	1,317
Sauk Rapids-Rice Middle School	62	5.8%	1,067
Rice Elementary School	12	3.3%	361
Foley Elementary School	12	2.1%	579
Foley Intermediate Elementary School	9	1.2%	743
Foley Senior High School	2	0.3%	603