Declo Elementary School

Declo Elementary School is a PK–5 elementary school in Declo, ID, serving 453 students within the Cassia County Joint District. The 2025–2026 school year marked a sharp reversal after four consecutive years of solid performance: the school dropped from the 62nd percentile statewide to the 28th percentile, earning a 1-star rating. Test scores fell across the board, with math proficiency dropping from 53.0% to 41.5% and ELA from 56.2% to 45.4%. Science scores for 5th graders fell even more dramatically, from 54.7% to 28.8%.

The clearest pattern inside the building is a divide between early and upper grades. Third graders meet or exceed state averages in both math and ELA, but by 5th grade the school trails the state by roughly 17–18 percentage points in math and science. Declo's student-teacher ratio of 23.2 is the highest among nearby elementary schools, which may mean less individualized attention as coursework becomes more challenging. And because Declo only serves through 5th grade, there is no 6th-grade recovery year like the one available at Dworshak Elementary School, where 5th-grade dips are often erased the following year.

Attendance is a clear bright spot. Declo's chronic absenteeism rate has improved for three straight years and now sits at 10.6%, well below the state average of 13.8% and far better than schools like Mountain View Elementary (19.6%) and Heyburn Elementary School (18.7%). The school also outperforms every Minidoka County Joint District school in both math and ELA by a wide margin. Yet schools with higher poverty rates, including Dworshak Elementary School and Raft River Elementary School, still post stronger test results than Declo, which has a comparatively low free/reduced lunch rate of 45.7%. For parents, that gap suggests Declo's recent decline may be more about instruction and class size than about the challenges students bring to school.