Deer Lodge Elementary

The Deer Lodge Elementary district in Montana is home to two schools: O D Speer School, an elementary school, and E F Duvall 7-8, a middle school. While the district as a whole has room for improvement, with a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger, the data reveals some notable differences between the two schools.

E F Duvall 7-8 has a higher statewide ranking than O D Speer School, ranking 69th out of 123 Montana middle schools compared to O D Speer School's ranking of 141st out of 212 elementary schools. Additionally, E F Duvall 7-8 has a higher percentage of students proficient or better in reading (43.3%) compared to O D Speer School (38.55%) and the district average (40.3%). However, O D Speer School outperforms E F Duvall 7-8 in mathematics, with 29.52% of students proficient or better, compared to 16.49% at the middle school and the district average of 24.71%.

Both schools serve a significant population of economically disadvantaged students, with over 57% of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. While the spending per student at O D Speer School ($10,927) is higher than the national average, the district may need to evaluate how these funds are being allocated to drive better student outcomes across the board. The relatively low student-teacher ratios at both schools could be an asset, but the data suggests there may be opportunities to further optimize teaching and learning practices to improve academic performance.