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Bench School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

327^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 401 Montana Elementary Schools

Better than 18% of Montana elementary schools

Summary

Bench School is an elementary school in Billings, Montana, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 332 students. The school is part of the Billings Elementary District, which is ranked 243 out of 387 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger. Bench School has consistently ranked in the bottom half of Montana elementary schools over the past decade, with a current statewide ranking of 327 out of 401 schools and a 1-star rating.

Bench School's academic performance is significantly below the district and state averages. In the 2024-2025 school year, only 29.85% of Bench School students were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 38.97% for the Billings Elementary district and 43.09% statewide. Similarly, in mathematics, only 18.66% of Bench School students were proficient or better, compared to 33.7% for the district and 36.77% statewide. Additionally, Bench School has a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, at 70.48% in the 2024-2025 school year, which is significantly higher than nearby schools like McKinley School (64.01%) and Highland School (48.19%).

Bench School's student-teacher ratio of 14.9 in the 2024-2025 school year is relatively high compared to some of the nearby schools, such as McKinley School (11.6) and Alkali Creek School (17.6). This, along with the school's high percentage of students from low-income families, may be contributing factors to its academic struggles. Bench School's statewide ranking has steadily declined over the past decade, suggesting that the school's performance has not kept pace with the rest of the state.

332

Students ?

14.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,697

Per pupil spending ?

70.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

505 Milton Road
Billings, MT 59105

(406) 281-6203

District: Billings Elementary

Students who attend Bench School usually attend:

Middle:	Castle Rock Middle School
High:	Skyview High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

56.6%

American Indian:

19.9%

Hispanic:

11.1%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2013 → 18th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Montana average (24% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (18th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 6 percentile points since 2013

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school24%

District avg36%

Montana avg40%

327^th of 401

Montana public elementary schools ?

Bottom 18%▲ up 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Montana Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

19^th of 21Elementary Schools in the Billings Elementary

243^rd of 387Billings Elementary among Montana districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Montana percentile	Rating
2025	24.3	327 of 401	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.4	282 of 332	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.7	288 of 329	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	42.5	241 of 356	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	22.3	101 of 123	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.6	112 of 116	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	6.8	107 of 109	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	13.5	172 of 191	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	22.1	238 of 287	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	34.9	187 of 246	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	32.3	194 of 244	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	34.5	194 of 247	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	38.6	181 of 241	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	38.6	148 of 190	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	36.0	156 of 194	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	48.8	137 of 230	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2006	40.0	170 of 234	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	17.3	195 of 218	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	25.6	170 of 217	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Montana (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts30%-13 vs state

Science21%-17 vs state

Mathematics19%-18 vs state

★

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Schools Near Bench School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				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 (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MAST English Language Arts All Grades	MAST Mathematics All Grades	Total
Bench School	Public	PK, KG-5	505 Milton Road	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 281-6203	332	22	14.9	70.5%	188 (56.6%)	3 (0.9%)	37 (11.1%)	1 (0.3%)	66 (19.9%)	1 (0.3%)	36 (10.8%)	24.3	327^th of 401 public elementary schools	18.5%					(n/a)	29.9	18.7	$12,697
Bitterroot School	Public	PK, KG-5	1801 Bench Blvd	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 281-6205	264	16	16.5	57.2%	185 (70.1%)	1 (0.4%)	35 (13.3%)	1 (0.4%)	10 (3.8%)	1 (0.4%)	31 (11.7%)	36.7	267^th of 401 public elementary schools	33.4%		40.2	140^th of 212 public elementary schools	34.0%	127	37.5	22.8	$12,334
Sandstone School	Public	PK, KG-5	1440 Nutter Blvd	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 281-6220	393	24	16.5	55.0%	276 (70.2%)	6 (1.5%)	47 (12.0%)	1 (0.3%)	36 (9.2%)	3 (0.8%)	24 (6.1%)	36.9	266^th of 401 public elementary schools	33.7%		61	96^th of 212 public elementary schools	54.7%	170	36.1	29.1	$11,897
Beartooth School	Public	PK, KG-5	1345 Elaine Street	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 281-6202	373	22	17.0	59.2%	256 (68.6%)	2 (0.5%)	40 (10.7%)	1 (0.3%)	49 (13.1%)	1 (0.3%)	24 (6.4%)	32.1	291^st of 401 public elementary schools	27.4%		49.9	125^th of 212 public elementary schools	41.0%	166	32.4	28.5	$12,091
Alkali Creek School	Public	PK, KG-5	681 Alkali Creek Road	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 281-6200	310	18	17.6	31.9%	234 (75.5%)	1 (0.3%)	33 (10.6%)	5 (1.6%)	13 (4.2%)	1 (0.3%)	23 (7.4%)	60.8	151^st of 401 public elementary schools	62.3%		61.6	94^th of 212 public elementary schools	55.7%	57	49.1	41.4	$11,705
Eagle Cliffs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1201 Kootenai	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 281-6210	443	25	17.6	25.7%	340 (76.7%)	4 (0.9%)	45 (10.2%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (6.1%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (5.9%)	69.1	106^th of 401 public elementary schools	73.6%		78	50^th of 212 public elementary schools	76.4%	56	53.4	54.8	$11,626
Lockwood Intermediate	Public	3-5	1932 US Highway 87 E.	Billings	59101	Yellowstone County	Lockwood K-12	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 248-3239	321	26	12.2	96.3%	238 (74.1%)	1 (0.3%)	48 (15.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (6.5%)	35.8	271^st of 401 public elementary schools	32.4%					(n/a)	33.2	28.5
Lockwood Primary	Public	PK, KG-2	1932 US Highway 87 E.	Billings	59101	Yellowstone County	Lockwood K-12	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 252-2776	348	28	12.4	96.0%	255 (73.3%)	1 (0.3%)	44 (12.6%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (8.3%)								(n/a)
Independent School	Public	PK, KG-6	2907 Roundup Road	Billings	59105	Yellowstone County	Independent Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 259-8109	272	20	13.8	31.3%	219 (80.5%)	1 (0.4%)	20 (7.4%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.8%)	7 (2.6%)	12 (4.4%)	48.8	214^th of 401 public elementary schools	46.6%					(n/a)	39.5	39.1	$9,691
McKinley School	Public	PK, KG-5	820 North 31st Street	Billings	59101	Yellowstone County	Billings Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 281-6212	339	29	11.6	64.0%	179 (52.8%)	5 (1.5%)	41 (12.1%)	5 (1.5%)	65 (19.2%)	1 (0.3%)	43 (12.7%)	57.7	168^th of 401 public elementary schools	58.1%		80	44^th of 212 public elementary schools	79.2%	124	45.2	43.8	$12,572

Frequently Asked Questions about Bench School

What schools do graduates of Bench School attend?

Students who attend Bench School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Castle Rock Middle School
High : Skyview High School

What is the racial makeup of Bench School?

Students at Bench School are 57% White, 20% American Indian, 11% Hispanic, 11% Two or more races.

How many students attend Bench School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 332 students attended Bench School.

Is Bench School a good school?

Bench School ranks in the bottom 18.5% of Montana elementary schools.

What district is Bench School in?

Billings Elementary

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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.