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Shepherd, Montana - 2 schools
An equity score of 34/100 ranks Shepherd Elem #80 of 141 districts in Montana (state average 38). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,221 per pupil, Shepherd Elem ranks #341 of 394 Montana districts by per-pupil spending (Montana districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
562
Total Enrollment
2
Schools
$11,221
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Shepherd Elem operates 2 public schools serving 562 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Montana. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 combined, 1 middle schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Yellowstone County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,221 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 394 Montana districts by per-pupil spending. See how Montana compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 31.8% local, 44.9% state, and 23.3% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 34/100, ranked #80 of 141 in Montana against a state average of 38, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 261:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 23.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 91.5% White, 2.0% Hispanic or Latino, 0.9% African American across the district's schools.
Its largest campus is Shepherd Elementary, enrolling 342 students (66% of the district's total enrollment).
Shepherd Elementary accounts for 60.9% of all Shepherd Elem student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Shepherd Elem a distant remainder — means Shepherd Elem-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Shepherd Elem student-counselor ratio is 261:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Shepherd Elem is typically wider than the Shepherd Elem-aggregate figure suggests.
Shepherd Elem chronic absenteeism rate is 23.1% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Shepherd Elem is typically wider than the Shepherd Elem-aggregate figure suggests.