Riddle Elementary School

Riddle Elementary School is a small K–6 school in the rural southern Oregon community of Riddle, serving 168 students as part of Riddle School District 70. In 2025–2026 it ranked 574th of 709 Oregon elementary schools (19th percentile, 1 star), and its district ranked 138th of 141 (2nd percentile, 0 stars). On state tests that year, 22.9% of students met standards in English Language Arts, 21.9% in math, and 16% in science, compared with state averages of 43.8%, 32.9%, and 30.6%.

Those results sit at or near the bottom of nearby schools. Eastwood Elementary School (33.3% in ELA), Sunny Wolf Charter School (42.6%), Green Elementary School (42.4%), Sunnyslope Elementary School (33.3%), McGovern Elementary School (36.3%), Myrtle Creek Elementary School (37.8%), Canyonville School (43.8%), and Tri City Elementary School (37.6%) all scored higher in ELA, and in math only Lookingglass Elementary School (14.3%) scored lower than Riddle's 21.9%. Riddle spends among the most per student in its area ($21,104) and has a relatively low 12.9 student-teacher ratio, and 75% of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Chronic absenteeism was 31.1% — below the state rate of 33.5% but above its district's 22.1%.

Third-grade ELA proficiency was under 5% against a state average of 41.5%, the clearest warning sign, and science was weak at every grade level. Bright spots include sixth-grade math at 29.6%, essentially matching the state average of 29.7%, sixth-grade ELA at 37%, and fifth-grade ELA at 28%, which beats Eastwood, Lookingglass, and Myrtle Creek. The school's low-income students ranked above the state median (54th percentile, 3 stars), while female students ranked in the 13th percentile and male students the 33rd. With only 168 students, one child can swing a grade-level percentage, so the under-5% third-grade figure should be read as a very low bound — but it still signals a serious need for targeted early-reading improvement.