Summary:
Elementary schools in North Wasco County School District 21 serve roughly 1,294 students across four schools in The Dalles and Mosier, Oregon: three K–5 schools — Dry Hollow Elementary School, Chenowith Elementary School, and Colonel Wright Elementary School — plus Mosier Community School, which serves grades K–8. These are high-poverty schools, with free/reduced-lunch rates from 91.93% to 100%, and the district as a whole ranks 119th of 141 Oregon districts (16th percentile).
Mosier Community School is the clear standout: highest all-grades ELA (38.3) and math (28.9), the only school above the bottom half of the state (47th percentile), the lowest chronic absenteeism (32.1% vs. the state's 33.5%), and the smallest classes (11.5 students per teacher) — while spending the least per student ($7,476). Among the K–5 schools, Dry Hollow Elementary School leads, with 5th-grade ELA 45, math 40, and a science score of 39.5 that is 8.9 points above the state. Chenowith Elementary School is the most urgent case: 703rd of 709 schools statewide (1st percentile), with the lowest ELA (15.2), math (9.9), and science (6.0), and the highest absenteeism (40.8%) — despite spending the most ($21,138) and having smaller classes than Dry Hollow. Colonel Wright Elementary School has slid from the 23rd to the 8th percentile over three years.
Three patterns stand out for families. Attendance tracks achievement exactly: ordering the four schools by absenteeism produces the same order as achievement. Third-grade ELA is weak everywhere — every school falls between 11.3 and 33.3 against a state average of 41.5. And spending doesn't explain results here: the two highest-spending schools post the two lowest ELA scores, and the two lowest-spending schools the two highest. Also note that all four schools declined in rank percentile in 2025-26, and Mosier's 7th-grade math (9.5) sits 23.8 points below the state.
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