Council Elementary School

Council Elementary School is a small, rural PK–6 school in Council, Idaho, serving 165 students within the Council District. The school currently ranks in the 16th percentile of Idaho elementary schools, a dramatic fall from its 2008–09 performance when it ranked in the 94th percentile. Academically, the school is below state averages in nearly every tested subject: just 24.7% of students are proficient in English Language Arts, compared to 54% statewide, and 36.6% are proficient in math, versus 43.1% statewide. About 42.4% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a moderate level of economic need.

Council's academic performance is substantially lower than every comparable nearby school. Donnelly Elementary posts an ELA proficiency rate of 75.6% and math at 64.4%, while Cambridge Elementary School reaches 47.2% ELA and 66.7% math — all far above Council. Fifth-grade science is especially weak: only 23.1% of Council 5th graders are proficient, compared to 44% statewide and over 50% at Donnelly and Cambridge. Council also has a much higher student-to-teacher ratio of 19.5, versus 12.7 at Donnelly, 9.3 at Cambridge, and 13.6 at Mountain Community School. Per-student spending at Council is $8,678, well below Donnelly's $10,935 and Cambridge's $21,265. Notably, Cambridge serves a higher-poverty population, yet achieves far stronger outcomes, suggesting resources and staffing matter more than poverty alone. Chronic absenteeism has also been volatile, including an extreme 86% rate in 2022–23 before dropping to 20.6% the following year.

There are a few bright spots. Council's 3rd-grade math proficiency reached 54.2% in 2025–26, above the state average, and all-grade math improved from 25% to 36.6% in one year. However, ELA has remained persistently low, hovering around 24–27% for several years. The school's long-term decline — from a 5-star ranking in 2008–09 to a 1-star ranking today — points to deep, systemic challenges rather than a single weak cohort. For parents, the key takeaway is that Council Elementary shows promise in early math but struggles critically in reading and science. With high class sizes and lower funding than its neighbors, the school will likely need targeted intervention and additional resources to reverse its trajectory and catch up to schools like Donnelly and Cambridge.