Best Public Schools in Zip Code 74536

ZIP code 74536 has two schools in the Clayton district: Crain Elementary School, serving pre-K through grade 8, and Clayton High School, serving grades 9–12. The latest test results show different subject profiles: Crain is 5–6 points below state results in its two reported subjects, while Clayton High is 2–20 points below in four subjects. Both schools have lower chronic absenteeism than the state, especially the high school, at 1% versus 16% statewide. The most important takeaway is that the results point to different strengths and challenges, not a clear overall winner: the schools serve different grade spans and do not have same-grade results for a direct comparison.

Clayton High School stands out for All Grades ELA, its closest result to the state: 24% proficient, 2 points below the state and 1 point above the district. Its largest shortfall is science, at 10% versus 30% statewide; math is 11% versus 25%, and U.S. History is 30% versus 41%. The 11th-grade ELA comparison is less favorable: 24% at the school versus 36% statewide, a 12-point gap. Crain Elementary School is 5 points below the state in ELA (21% versus 26%) and 6 points below in math (19% versus 25%). Outside testing, Clayton High’s 2024–2025 graduation rate was 82%, 4 points above the state rate and equal to its district’s; Crain’s absenteeism rate was also below the state’s, though 3 points above the district’s.

Recent changes show improvement at Crain in both reported subjects: ELA rose 1 point and math 4 points from 2024–2025 to 2025–2026, narrowing the state gaps by 1 and 5 points. Clayton High’s ELA rose 3 points and math 5 points, but science fell 6 points and U.S. History fell 2 points; its science gap widened by 6 points. SchoolDigger’s Clayton High percentile ranking rose from 17 to 23 over three years, a 6-point increase, while its latest rating remained one star. For context, in 2024–2025 Crain had 116 students, an 11.8 student–teacher ratio, and 80% free/reduced lunch eligible; Clayton High had 100 students, a 12.9 ratio, and 69% free/reduced lunch eligible.