Mackay Joint District

The Mackay Joint District is a small, rural Idaho district with two schools serving about 218 students in grades PK–12: Mackay Elementary School (PK–6) and Mackay Junior/Senior High School (7–12), with the district ranking 42nd out of 101 Idaho districts (3 stars). Each school stands out differently: the elementary school is the standout for improvement, jumping from a 1-star rating in 2024–2025 to a 3-star rating in 2025–2026, while posting exceptionally low chronic absenteeism at 7.8%. The high school is the standout for stability and graduation, maintaining a 3-star rating in two of the last three years and posting a graduation rate exactly matching the state average at 82.5%.

Both schools serve similar socioeconomic populations, with about 40–41% of students eligible for free/reduced lunch. However, academic performance varies sharply. In 2025–2026, elementary math proficiency was 25% and high school math proficiency was 19.6%, both well below the state's 43.1%. Elementary ELA proficiency was 48.4% (below the state's 54.0%), while the high school's ELA proficiency was 45.8% after a steep 17.5-point drop from 63.3% the previous year. The high school spends about $2,049 more per student than the elementary school ($12,211 vs. $10,162), a common pattern due to secondary program costs, yet this higher spending does not translate into better test scores.

The most striking finding is the chronic absenteeism divide: the high school's rate of 22.7% is nearly three times the elementary school's 7.8% and nearly 9 points above the state average, suggesting student engagement drops significantly in secondary grades. Both schools lag in math, though the elementary school shows bright spots in 5th grade math (50% proficient) and 6th grade ELA (54.5% proficient). Given similar poverty levels across the two schools, the differences in attendance and math outcomes point to school-level or cohort-specific challenges rather than purely socioeconomic factors. Overall, the district's most urgent concerns are the high school's chronic absenteeism and persistently low math scores at both schools, while the elementary school's upward trajectory offers a model for improvement.