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Sunburst Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-8
211th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 401 Montana Elementary Schools
Better than 47% of Montana elementary schools
Summary

Sunburst Elementary is a public elementary school located in Sunburst, MT, serving grades PK-8 with a total enrollment of 57 students. The school is part of the Sunburst K-12 Schools district, which is ranked 173 out of 387 districts in Montana and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Sunburst Elementary has consistently performed above the state average in various standardized tests, including MAST/English Language Arts, MAST/Mathematics, and Montana Science Assessment/Science. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, Sunburst Elementary's proficiency rates were 43.75% in ELA, 34.38% in Math, and 37.5% in Science, compared to the state averages of 43.09%, 36.77%, and 38.16%, respectively. The school also has a very low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 6.7 to 10.2 students per teacher, significantly lower than the nearby schools, which have ratios ranging from 10 to 15 students per teacher. Additionally, Sunburst Elementary spends $13,341 per student, which is higher than the nearby schools, which spend around $9,750 per student.

While Sunburst Elementary's statewide ranking has fluctuated significantly over the years, ranging from 26th out of 329 elementary schools in 2021-2022 (5-star rating) to 211th out of 401 in 2024-2025 (2-star rating), the school appears to be outpacing its nearby counterparts, such as Zenith Elementary, Big Rose Colony School, Horizon Elementary, and Glacier Elementary, in several key metrics, including test scores, student-teacher ratio, and spending per student. This suggests that Sunburst Elementary may be providing a higher-quality education to its students, despite serving a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students.

57
Students ?
6.7
Student/teacher ratio ?
$17,700
Per pupil spending ?
100%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 220 1st St South
       Sunburst, MT  59482

(406) 937-2816

District: Sunburst K-12 Schools


Students who attend Sunburst Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Sunburst 7 - 8
High:    Sunburst High School
Racial breakdown:

White:
96.5%
Hispanic:
3.5%
 See top rated Montana elementary schools

 Compare Sunburst Elementary to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Declining — 56th percentile in 2010 → 47th in 2025
Strengths
Small classes — about 7 students per teacher
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped — down 9 percentile points since 2010
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school39%
District avg34%
Montana avg40%
211th of 401
Montana public elementary schools ?
Bottom 47%▼ down 20 pts since 2016
From top 32% (2016) to bottom 47% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Montana Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
173rd of 387Sunburst K-12 Schools 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMontana percentileRating
202549.5211 of 40147.4%★★☆☆☆
202462.192 of 21256.6%★★★☆☆
202351.7181 of 33245.5%★★☆☆☆
202290.626 of 32992.1%★★★★★
202176.196 of 35673.0%★★★★☆
201666.262 of 19167.5%★★★☆☆
201368.562 of 24674.8%★★★★☆
201249.4155 of 24436.5%★★☆☆☆
201166.479 of 24768.0%★★★☆☆
201058.3107 of 24155.6%★★★☆☆
200970.844 of 19076.8%★★★★☆
200875.129 of 19485.1%★★★★☆
200788.54 of 23098.3%★★★★★
200683.411 of 23495.3%★★★★★
200593.62 of 21899.1%★★★★★
200497.23 of 21798.6%★★★★★
By subject vs Montana (2024-2025) ?
English Language Arts44%~ state avg
Science38%~ state avg
Mathematics34%~ state avg

3.0
1 rating · 1 written review
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What people are saying
by a parent
Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Open Quote Used to be a good school until the new principal came. He has some of the craziest ideas and is a terrible bully to the children! Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Sunburst Elementary

Students who attend Sunburst Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Sunburst 7 - 8
High : Sunburst High School

Students at Sunburst Elementary are 96% White, 4% Hispanic.

Sunburst Elementary ranks 211th of 401 Montana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

In the 2024-25 school year, 57 students attended Sunburst 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.





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