Swan River Elementary

Summary:

The Swan River Elementary district in Montana operates two schools: Swan River School, an elementary school, and Swan River 6-8, a middle school. Both schools serve a high-need student population, with 100% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch.

While Swan River School has shown improvement in its statewide ranking, moving from 240th out of 329 Montana elementary schools in 2021-2022 to 206th out of 401 in 2024-2025, Swan River 6-8 has seen a drop in its ranking, from 32nd out of 190 Montana middle schools in 2021-2022 to 148th out of 222 in 2024-2025. This contrast is also reflected in the schools' test scores, with Swan River School outperforming the district and state in English Language Arts, Math, and Science, while Swan River 6-8 lags behind.

Despite the differences in performance, both schools have the same spending per student at $9,163 for the 2018-2019 school year. The student-teacher ratio also varies, with Swan River School having a ratio of 12.9 and Swan River 6-8 having a lower ratio of 9.7. Understanding the factors behind these trends and differences could help the Swan River Elementary district identify areas for improvement and better support student success.

District Detail

1205 Swan Highway 83
Bigfork, MT 59911

(406) 837-4528

SchoolDigger Rank:
246^th of 387 Montana districts

See the 2025 Montana District rankings!

Grades served: PK, KG-8
Students: 158

Primary Schools: 1
Middle Schools: 1
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
Swan River School	Public	PK, KG-5	1205 Swan Highway	Bigfork	59911	Flathead County	Swan River Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 837-4528	106	8	12.9	100.0%	96 (90.6%)	2 (1.9%)	4 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.8%)	50.3	206^th of 401 public elementary schools	48.6%					(n/a)	52.7	20.0	$12,156
Swan River 6-8	Public	6-8	1205 Swan Highway	Bigfork	59911	Flathead County	Swan River Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 837-4528	52	5	9.7	100.0%	44 (84.6%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (5.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (9.6%)	38	148^th of 222 public middle schools	33.3%					(n/a)	39.6	24.5	$7,036

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Bigfork High School	3.16 mi	1	40^th
Bigfork Elementary	3.17 mi	2	159^th
Creston Elementary	8.23 mi	1	204^th
Somers Elementary	9.03 mi	2	93^rd
Cayuse Prairie Elementary	10.01 mi	2	84^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.