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McKay Creek Elementary School

Q: Is McKay Creek Elementary School a good school?

McKay Creek Elementary School ranks 259 th of 706 Oregon elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

259^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 706 Oregon Elementary Schools

Better than 63% of Oregon elementary schools

Summary

McKay Creek Elementary School is a public elementary school in Pendleton, Oregon, serving 253 students in grades K-5 and part of the Pendleton School District 16.

McKay Creek Elementary School stands out for its strong academic performance, consistently outpacing the district and state averages in English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency across grades 3-5. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 67.4% of 5th-grade students at McKay Creek were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 47.5% for the district and 46.7% for the state. However, the school faces challenges with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 22.0% to 41.9% in recent years, which may be impacting student learning. Additionally, the school has struggled with the performance of certain student subgroups, such as multi-racial students and special education students.

While McKay Creek Elementary School outperforms its district and the state, it is not the top-performing school in the immediate vicinity. Athena Elementary School, located 19.9 miles away, has outperformed McKay Creek in 3rd-grade ELA and Mathematics proficiency in recent years. The school's relatively high per-student spending of around $15,700 and a student-teacher ratio of 17.2 may also be areas for further exploration and potential improvement.

265

Students ?

18.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,713

Per pupil spending ?

82.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1539 SW 44th St
Pendleton, OR 97801-3799

(541) 966-3000

District: Pendleton School District 16

Students who attend McKay Creek Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Sunridge Middle School
High:	Pendleton High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

76.6%

Hispanic:

9.8%

Two or more races:

9.1%

See top rated Oregon elementary schools

Compare McKay Creek Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 69th percentile in 2023 → 63rd in 2025

Strengths

✓Above the Oregon median (63rd percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped from its 69th-percentile peak (2023) to 63rd (2025)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school43%

District avg30%

Oregon avg38%

259^th of 706

Oregon public elementary schools ?

Top 37%▼ down 4 pts since 2015

From top 32% (2015) to top 37% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Oregon Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 3Elementary Schools in the Pendleton School District 16

92^nd of 140Pendleton School District 16 among Oregon 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	Oregon percentile	Rating
2025	57.4	259 of 706	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.8	251 of 710	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	63.8	220 of 706	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	61.4	229 of 706	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	51.6	319 of 705	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	43.9	394 of 709	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2017	52.9	304 of 701	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2016	50.0	333 of 697	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2015	61.9	229 of 706	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2014	47.1	386 of 695	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	56.3	318 of 707	55.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	55.7	326 of 730	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2011	68.6	189 of 695	72.8%	★★★★☆
2010	52.0	363 of 674	46.1%	★★☆☆☆
2009	46.0	399 of 665	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	63.4	244 of 655	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2007	40.6	420 of 652	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2006	67.5	193 of 636	69.7%	★★★☆☆
2005	57.9	278 of 629	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2004	76.3	100 of 586	82.9%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2025	48.2	298 of 653	54.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	61.0	208 of 658	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	72.0	153 of 652	76.5%	★★★★☆
2022	72.2	141 of 646	78.2%	★★★★☆
2019	45.6	334 of 621	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.0	429 of 681	37.0%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2018	55.2	176 of 475	62.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2025	25.0	436 of 518	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	44.1	278 of 523	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	81.6	58 of 595	90.3%	★★★★★
2022	61.7	226 of 703	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	29.4	471 of 597	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.7	544 of 640	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2025	64.3	190 of 664	71.4%	★★★★☆
2024	54.8	254 of 662	61.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.0	285 of 665	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.3	304 of 654	53.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	54.8	249 of 623	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	47.3	349 of 680	48.7%	★★☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2018	16.6	200 of 212	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2018	15.4	471 of 481	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Oregon percentile	Rating
2025	54.3	272 of 669	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.1	244 of 670	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.9	253 of 656	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	56.5	261 of 666	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	48.0	340 of 662	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.9	468 of 683	31.5%	★★☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Male (2025)71st percentile+8 vs school

Hispanic (2018)63rd percentile+19 vs school

White (2025)59th percentile-4 vs school

Female (2025)54th percentile-9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)16th percentile-47 vs school

Multi-racial (2018)6th percentile-39 vs school

Special Education (2018)2nd percentile-42 vs school

By subject vs Oregon (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts46%+3 vs state

Mathematics41%+5 vs state

Science37%+6 vs state

★

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Schools Near McKay Creek Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				OSAS English Language Arts (2025)				OSAS Mathematics (2025)				OSAS Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2023)
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	OSAS English Language Arts 3rd Grade	OSAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	OSAS English Language Arts 5th Grade	OSAS English Language Arts 6th Grade	OSAS Mathematics 3rd Grade	OSAS Mathematics 4th Grade	OSAS Mathematics 5th Grade	OSAS Mathematics 6th Grade	OSAS Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
McKay Creek Elementary School	Public	K-5	1539 SW 44th St	Pendleton	97801	Umatilla County	Pendleton School District 16	No	(n/a)	No	No	(541) 966-3000	265	14	18.4	82.6%	203 (76.6%)	4 (1.5%)	26 (9.8%)	2 (0.8%)	6 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (9.1%)	57.4	259^th of 706 public elementary schools	63.3%		58.8	251^st of 710 public elementary schools	64.6%	8	26.2	44.2	67.4		28.6	46.2	46.7		36.7	$15,713	$317	$15,397
Sherwood Heights Elementary School	Public	K-5	3235 SW Nye Ave	Pendleton	97801	Umatilla County	Pendleton School District 16	No	(n/a)	No	No	(541) 966-3050	439	27	16.2	83.8%	274 (62.4%)	8 (1.8%)	87 (19.8%)	4 (0.9%)	20 (4.6%)	2 (0.5%)	44 (10.0%)	19.4	591^st of 706 public elementary schools	16.3%		21.6	580^th of 710 public elementary schools	18.3%	11	20.0	18.2	38.5		26.0	17.0	20.8		17.3	$15,527	$83	$15,444
Pendleton Early Learning Center	Public	PK-K	455 SW 13th St	Pendleton	97801	Umatilla County	Pendleton School District 16	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(541) 966-3300	197	14	13.8	113.7%	120 (60.9%)	1 (0.5%)	40 (20.3%)	3 (1.5%)	16 (8.1%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (8.6%)								(n/a)										$18,610	$4,282	$14,328
Washington Elementary School	Public	K-5	1205 SE Byers Ave	Pendleton	97801	Umatilla County	Pendleton School District 16	No	(n/a)	No	No	(541) 966-5552	420	26	16.4	83.1%	208 (49.5%)	4 (1.0%)	78 (18.6%)	1 (0.2%)	89 (21.2%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (9.5%)	32.5	470^th of 706 public elementary schools	33.4%		31.4	480^th of 710 public elementary schools	32.4%	10	35.5	29.4	46.9		31.6	13.6	22.0		33.7	$16,662	$85	$16,576
Pilot Rock Elementary School	Public	K-6	200 Vern McGowan Dr	Pilot Rock	97868	Umatilla County	Pilot Rock School District 2	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(541) 443-2361	136	10	13.6	72.8%	107 (78.7%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (12.5%)	1 (0.7%)	3 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (5.9%)	36.5	435^th of 706 public elementary schools	38.4%		33.8	458^th of 710 public elementary schools	35.5%	23	11.8	31.8	35.0	48.0	5.9	27.3	20.0	56.0	20.0	$18,047	$2,877	$15,170
Athena Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-3	375 S 5th St	Athena	97813	Umatilla County	Athena-Weston School District 29RJ	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(541) 566-3581	124	13	9.5	74.2%	91 (73.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (14.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (9.7%)								(n/a)	43.2				45.5					$20,607	$1,728	$18,879

Frequently Asked Questions about McKay Creek Elementary School

What schools do graduates of McKay Creek Elementary School attend?

Students who attend McKay Creek Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Sunridge Middle School
High : Pendleton High School

What district is McKay Creek Elementary School in?

Pendleton School District 16

What is the racial makeup of McKay Creek Elementary School?

Students at McKay Creek Elementary School are 77% White, 10% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races, 2% American Indian, 2% African American.

Is McKay Creek Elementary School a good school?

McKay Creek Elementary School ranks 259^th of 706 Oregon elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

How many students attend McKay Creek Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 265 students attended McKay Creek Elementary School.

Rate McKay Creek Elementary School!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Oregon Department of Education.

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.