Elementary Schools in Great Falls Elementary

Summary:

The Great Falls Elementary district in Montana contains 15 elementary schools serving students from kindergarten through 6th grade. The schools vary significantly in size, with student populations ranging from 187 to 527, and in academic performance, with some schools ranking among the top in the state and others struggling to meet proficiency standards.

A few schools stand out as top performers within the district. Meadow Lark School ranks in the top 20 elementary schools in Montana, with consistently high test scores and a relatively low free/reduced lunch rate. Sacajawea School and Chief Joseph School also perform well, with the latter showing significant improvement in recent years. In contrast, schools like Whittier School and Longfellow School struggle, with proficiency rates well below 20% in core subjects.

The data suggests a strong correlation between a school's socioeconomic status, as measured by free/reduced lunch rates, and its academic performance. This raises concerns about equity and access to quality education for all students in the Great Falls Elementary district. Addressing the needs of the lower-performing schools and replicating the successful strategies of the top-performing schools should be a priority for district leaders and policymakers.

District Detail

1100 4th St So
Great Falls, MT 59405

(406) 268-6447

SchoolDigger Rank:
241^st of 387 Montana districts

See the 2025 Montana District rankings!

Grades served: PK, KG-8
Students: 6,890

Primary Schools: 15
Middle Schools: 2
High Schools: 0
Alternative Schools: 0

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking ()				MAST English Language Arts (2025)	MAST Mathematics (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	Rank Change from Previous Year	MAST English Language Arts All Grades	MAST Mathematics All Grades	Total
Chief Joseph School	Public	PK, KG-6	5305 3rd Avenue South	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-6675	260	21	12.1	55.8%	190 (73.1%)	3 (1.2%)	23 (8.8%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (11.5%)	71.5	92^nd of 401 public elementary schools	77.1%					(n/a)	55.2	50.0	$14,339
Lewis & Clark School	Public	PK, KG-6	3800 1st Avenue South	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-6705	338	18	19.2	59.8%	247 (73.1%)	1 (0.3%)	43 (12.7%)	1 (0.3%)	15 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (9.2%)	42.7	245^th of 401 public elementary schools	38.9%					(n/a)	39.6	32.1	$12,147
Lincoln School	Public	PK, KG-6	624 27th Street South	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 268-6800	373	24	15.6	54.7%	273 (73.2%)	2 (0.5%)	29 (7.8%)	4 (1.1%)	18 (4.8%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (12.6%)	48.6	215^th of 401 public elementary schools	46.4%					(n/a)	42.7	36.4	$11,668
Longfellow School	Public	PK, KG-6	1100 6th Ave So	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-6845	263	22	12.1	98.1%	107 (40.7%)	3 (1.1%)	45 (17.1%)	1 (0.4%)	62 (23.6%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (17.1%)	9.8	372^nd of 401 public elementary schools	7.2%					(n/a)	12.0	9.1	$12,920
Loy School	Public	PK, KG-6	501 57th Street North	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 268-6885	392	22	17.5	33.7%	240 (61.2%)	27 (6.9%)	69 (17.6%)	7 (1.8%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (11.2%)	59.9	156^th of 401 public elementary schools	61.1%					(n/a)	49.4	42.6	$10,936
Meadow Lark School	Public	PK, KG-6	2204 Fox Farm Road	Great Falls	59404	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 268-7300	527	26	20.0	19.4%	446 (84.6%)	4 (0.8%)	32 (6.1%)	2 (0.4%)	8 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (6.6%)	76.2	69^th of 401 public elementary schools	82.8%					(n/a)	53.9	56.4	$10,549
Mountain View School	Public	PK, KG-6	3420 15th Avenue South	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7305	315	32	9.7	80.6%	195 (61.9%)	2 (0.6%)	20 (6.3%)	2 (0.6%)	43 (13.7%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (16.8%)	30.8	299^th of 401 public elementary schools	25.4%					(n/a)	30.2	24.0	$15,978
Riverview School	Public	PK, KG-6	100 Smelter Avenue	Great Falls	59404	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 268-7015	445	21	21.1	38.0%	347 (78.0%)	3 (0.7%)	33 (7.4%)	5 (1.1%)	19 (4.3%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (8.5%)	67.9	116^th of 401 public elementary schools	71.1%					(n/a)	48.9	51.1	$11,286
Sacajawea School	Public	PK, KG-6	630 Sacajawea Drive	Great Falls	59404	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 268-7080	405	23	17.8	45.2%	309 (76.3%)	1 (0.2%)	24 (5.9%)	6 (1.5%)	9 (2.2%)	1 (0.2%)	55 (13.6%)	69.3	105^th of 401 public elementary schools	73.8%					(n/a)	55.6	45.3	$11,610
Sunnyside School	Public	PK, KG-6	1800 19th Street South	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7115	396	25	15.6	78.5%	226 (57.1%)	6 (1.5%)	54 (13.6%)	5 (1.3%)	33 (8.3%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (18.2%)	24.2	328^th of 401 public elementary schools	18.2%					(n/a)	21.9	26.2	$11,580
Valley View School	Public	PK, KG-6	900 Avenue A NW	Great Falls	59404	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7145	312	21	14.7	57.7%	224 (71.8%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (8.7%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (15.4%)	23.2	333^rd of 401 public elementary schools	17.0%					(n/a)	26.9	21.6	$12,583
Whittier School	Public	PK, KG-6	305 8th Street North	Great Falls	59401	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7230	187	18	10.6	97.3%	77 (41.2%)	2 (1.1%)	22 (11.8%)	3 (1.6%)	42 (22.5%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (21.9%)	7	381^st of 401 public elementary schools	5.0%					(n/a)	7.4	6.2	$15,657
West Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	1205 1st Avenue NW	Great Falls	59404	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7180	421	31	13.7	76.2%	296 (70.3%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (7.8%)	1 (0.2%)	33 (7.8%)	0 (0.0%)	58 (13.8%)	22.6	334^th of 401 public elementary schools	16.7%					(n/a)	22.1	26.3	$11,934
Giant Springs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	520 32nd Street North	Great Falls	59401	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 268-7045	431	30	14.4	75.6%	308 (71.5%)	7 (1.6%)	33 (7.7%)	1 (0.2%)	30 (7.0%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (12.1%)	42.6	246^th of 401 public elementary schools	38.7%					(n/a)	38.4	31.0	$10,538
CORE School at Morningside Elementary	Public	K-6	4119 7th Ave N	Great Falls	59405	Cascade County	Great Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(406) 268-6050	297	21	13.9	57.6%	198 (66.7%)	4 (1.3%)	36 (12.1%)	3 (1.0%)	13 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (14.5%)	33.7	284^th of 401 public elementary schools	29.2%					(n/a)	33.9	25.7

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Mont School for Deaf Blind	0.96 mi	2	354^th
Great Falls High School	2.54 mi	2	203^rd
Centerville Elementary	7.07 mi	5	192^nd
Centerville High School	8.66 mi	1	197^th
Belt Elementary	13.97 mi	3	140^th

See the top MT Montana districts

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Montana Office of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.