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Ruder Elementary

Q: Is Ruder Elementary a good school?

Ruder Elementary ranks 259 th of 401 Montana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

259^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 401 Montana Elementary Schools

Better than 35% of Montana elementary schools

Summary

Ruder Elementary is a public elementary school located in Columbia Falls, Montana, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 487 students. The school is part of the Columbia Falls Elementary School District, which is ranked 230 out of 387 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Ruder Elementary has consistently underperformed compared to the state and district averages in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science proficiency. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, Ruder Elementary had 38.49% proficiency in ELA, compared to 41.41% for the district and 43.09% for the state. In Mathematics, Ruder had 25.75% proficiency, while the district and state had 33.73% and 36.77%, respectively. Additionally, Ruder Elementary has a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, reaching 97.54% in the 2024-2025 school year, significantly higher than the state and district averages.

While Ruder Elementary is underperforming compared to the state and district, some nearby schools, such as Fair-Mont-Egan School and Bissell School, are outperforming the state in both ELA and Mathematics proficiency. This suggests that there may be opportunities to learn from the practices and strategies of these higher-performing schools. Additionally, Ruder Elementary's statewide ranking has dropped significantly over the years, from a high of 14th out of 116 Montana elementary schools in 2017-2018 to 259th out of 401 in 2024-2025, indicating a concerning trend of declining academic performance.

487

Students ?

14.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,747

Per pupil spending ?

97.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1500 12th Avenue West
Columbia Falls, MT 59912

(406) 892-6570

District: Columbia Falls Elementary

Students who attend Ruder Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Columbia Falls Junior High School
High:	Columbia Falls High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

84.8%

Two or more races:

8.8%

Hispanic:

5.3%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 53rd percentile in 2013 → 35th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Montana average (33% vs 40% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 18 percentile points since 2013

!Mathematics scores 11 pts below the Montana average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school33%

District avg37%

Montana avg40%

259^th of 401

Montana public elementary schools ?

Bottom 35%▼ down 42 pts since 2015

From top 23% (2015) to bottom 35% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Montana Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Elementary Schools in the Columbia Falls Elementary

230^th of 387Columbia Falls 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	38.4	259 of 401	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	61.5	135 of 332	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	57.7	160 of 329	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	65.0	138 of 356	61.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.6	46 of 123	62.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	81.5	14 of 116	87.9%	★★★★☆
2017	70.9	26 of 109	76.1%	★★★★☆
2016	74.4	50 of 191	73.8%	★★★★☆
2015	77.8	66 of 287	77.0%	★★★★☆
2013	57.9	116 of 246	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2012	66.8	69 of 244	71.7%	★★★★☆
2011	66.3	80 of 247	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2010	49.1	151 of 241	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2009	39.0	146 of 190	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	44.7	131 of 194	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2007	36.0	187 of 230	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	37.2	179 of 234	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	39.9	151 of 218	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2004	22.0	185 of 217	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Montana (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts38%-5 vs state

Science36%~ state avg

Mathematics26%-11 vs state

★

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Schools Near Ruder Elementary

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
Ruder Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1500 12th Avenue West	Columbia Falls	59912	Flathead County	Columbia Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 892-6570	487	34	14.3	97.5%	413 (84.8%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	43 (8.8%)	38.4	259^th of 401 public elementary schools	35.4%					(n/a)	38.5	25.8	$11,747
Glacier Gateway Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	440 4th Avenue West	Columbia Falls	59912	Flathead County	Columbia Falls Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 892-6540	471	33	14.4	98.9%	405 (86.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (5.3%)	1 (0.2%)	7 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (7.0%)	48	218^th of 401 public elementary schools	45.6%					(n/a)	37.7	35.3	$12,477
Deer Park School	Public	PK, KG-5	2105 Middle Road	Columbia Falls	59912	Flathead County	Deer Park Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 892-5388	120	9	13.4	35.8%	114 (95.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.8%)	73.5	81^st of 401 public elementary schools	79.8%		71.7	68^th of 212 public elementary schools	67.9%	13	55.9	50.0	$10,359
L A Muldown School	Public	PK, KG-4	1300 East 7th St.	Whitefish	59937	Flathead County	Whitefish Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 862-8620	661	50	13.2	28.7%	589 (89.1%)	1 (0.2%)	37 (5.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (5.1%)	88.1	24^th of 401 public elementary schools	94.0%					(n/a)	61.3	71.2	$12,437
Helena Flats School	Public	PK, KG-6	1000 Helena Flats Road	Kalispell	59901	Flathead County	Helena Flats Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 257-2301	253	14	17.7	100.0%	238 (94.1%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.4%)	4 (1.6%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.2%)	49.6	209^th of 401 public elementary schools	47.9%					(n/a)	38.7	37.6	$9,229
East Evergreen School	Public	PK, KG-4	585 E. Evergreen	Kalispell	59901	Flathead County	Evergreen Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 751-1121	360	28	13.0	100.0%	294 (81.7%)	2 (0.6%)	35 (9.7%)	2 (0.6%)	3 (0.8%)	2 (0.6%)	22 (6.1%)	29.7	305^th of 401 public elementary schools	23.9%					(n/a)	27.3	28.8	$15,199
Cayuse Prairie School	Public	PK, KG-6	897 Lake Blaine Road	Kalispell	59901	Flathead County	Cayuse Prairie Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 756-4560	254	17	14.9	32.3%	231 (90.9%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.5%)	72.9	84^th of 401 public elementary schools	79.1%					(n/a)	53.2	52.4	$10,679
Edgerton School	Public	PK, KG-5	1400 Whitefish Stage	Kalispell	59901	Flathead County	Kalispell Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(406) 751-4040	509	30	17.2	100.0%	434 (85.3%)	2 (0.4%)	36 (7.1%)	5 (1.0%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (5.7%)	65.7	127^th of 401 public elementary schools	68.3%					(n/a)	55.0	46.6	$11,252
Fair-Mont-Egan School	Public	PK, KG-5	797 Fairmont Road	Kalispell	59901	Flathead County	Fair-Mont-Egan Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 755-7072	115	10	11.9	100.0%	108 (93.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	1 (0.9%)	3 (2.6%)	78.9	57^th of 401 public elementary schools	85.8%					(n/a)	58.3	55.0	$15,256
Bissell School	Public	PK, KG-6	5955 Farm To Market Road	Whitefish	59937	Flathead County	Olney-Bissell Elementary	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(406) 862-2828	78	9	8.9	37.2%	71 (91.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.6%)	3 (3.8%)	78	60^th of 401 public elementary schools	85.0%		75.8	57^th of 212 public elementary schools	73.1%	3	55.3	57.5	$17,890

Frequently Asked Questions about Ruder Elementary

How many students attend Ruder Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 487 students attended Ruder Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Ruder Elementary attend?

Students who attend Ruder Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Columbia Falls Junior High School
High : Columbia Falls High School

What district is Ruder Elementary in?

Columbia Falls Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Ruder Elementary?

Students at Ruder Elementary are 85% White, 9% Two or more races, 5% Hispanic.

Is Ruder Elementary a good school?

Ruder Elementary ranks 259^th of 401 Montana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Rate Ruder Elementary!

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Schools in Columbia Falls, MT

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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.