Ekalaka 7-8

Ekalaka 7-8 is a small public middle school in Ekalaka, Montana, serving 25 students in grades 7-8. The school is part of the Ekalaka Elementary District, which is ranked 72 out of 387 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating.

Ekalaka 7-8 has consistently outperformed the state average in mathematics proficiency, with 95.45% of students proficient or better in 2024-2025, compared to the state average of 36.77%. However, the school's performance in English Language Arts (ELA) has been below the state average, with only 31.82% of students proficient or better. In science, the school has performed better than the state average, with 57.14% of students proficient or better. The school has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 7.5 to 16.6 students per teacher, and a high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 47.62% to 48% over the past three school years.

Ekalaka 7-8's performance on state assessments has been somewhat inconsistent over the past few years, ranking as high as 16th out of 156 Montana middle schools in 2014-2015 and as low as 158th out of 187 in 2022-2023. This fluctuation in performance may be due to the small student population, which can make the school's results more sensitive to changes in the student body. Compared to its feeder school, Ekalaka Elementary, the middle school has generally outperformed in mathematics and science proficiency, but has lagged behind in ELA proficiency, suggesting that the middle school may be providing additional support or resources in certain subject areas.