Thompson Falls Elementary

Public school district · Sanders County · Montana · NCES district ID 3026070

Thompson Falls Elementary spent $13,672 per student on current operations in fiscal year 2022-23, below the middle: 72% of the other Montana districts with fewer than 1,000 students in fall 2022 spent more (median $16,778). Its 2 schools enrolled 308 students in 2024-25; 28.4% of its revenue came from the state. Census Bureau figures for 2023-24 put it at $14,784 per student, up 8.1% on the year before (U.S. $17,619 that year).

NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23 · Census Bureau school finances 2023-24 · NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 · method

Spending per student among Montana districts of similar size

Current spending per student excludes construction and debt. The 9 districts closest to Thompson Falls Elementary in enrollment (303 to 339 students) and Thompson Falls Elementary itself.

Current spending per student, Montana districts closest in size to Thompson Falls Elementary, FY23Box Elder Public Schools $21,294; Beaverhead County High School $16,794; Darby School District 9 $15,285; Superior $14,978; Thompson Falls Elementary $13,672; Whitehall Elementary $12,485; Red Lodge Elementary $12,104; Cayuse Prairie School District #10 $11,674; Big Timber Elementary $10,852; Lincoln County High School $9,905; State median, under 1,000 students $16,778.5k10k15k20k25kBox Elder Public Schools$21,294Beaverhead County High School$16,794Darby School District 9$15,285Superior$14,978Thompson Falls Elementary$13,672Whitehall Elementary$12,485Red Lodge Elementary$12,104Cayuse Prairie School District…$11,674Big Timber Elementary$10,852Lincoln County High School$9,905State median, under 1,000 students $16,778
Current spending per student, Montana districts closest in size to Thompson Falls Elementary, FY23Box Elder Public Schools $21,294; Beaverhead County High School $16,794; Darby School District 9 $15,285; Superior $14,978; Thompson Falls Elementary $13,672; Whitehall Elementary $12,485; Red Lodge Elementary $12,104; Cayuse Prairie School District #10 $11,674; Big Timber Elementary $10,852; Lincoln County High School $9,905; State median, under 1,000 students $16,778.5k10k15k20k25kBox Elder Public Schools$21,294Beaverhead County High School$16,794Darby School District 9$15,285Superior$14,978Thompson Falls Elementary$13,672Whitehall Elementary$12,485Red Lodge Elementary$12,104Cayuse Prairie School District #10$11,674Big Timber Elementary$10,852Lincoln County High School$9,905State median, under 1,000 students $16,778
Current spending per student, Montana districts closest in size to Thompson Falls Elementary, FY23Box Elder Public Schools $21,294; Beaverhead County High School $16,794; Darby School District 9 $15,285; Superior $14,978; Thompson Falls Elementary $13,672; Whitehall Elementary $12,485; Red Lodge Elementary $12,104; Cayuse Prairie School District #10 $11,674; Big Timber Elementary $10,852; Lincoln County High School $9,905; State median, under 1,000 students $16,778.5k15k25kBox Elder Public Schools$21,294Beaverhead County High School$16,794Darby School District 9$15,285Superior$14,978Thompson Falls Elementary$13,672Whitehall Elementary$12,485Red Lodge Elementary$12,104Cayuse Prairie School District #10$11,674Big Timber Elementary$10,852Lincoln County High School$9,905State median, under 1,000 students $16,778
Current spending per student, Montana districts closest in size to Thompson Falls Elementary, FY23Box Elder Public Schools $21,294; Beaverhead County High School $16,794; Darby School District 9 $15,285; Superior $14,978; Thompson Falls Elementary $13,672; Whitehall Elementary $12,485; Red Lodge Elementary $12,104; Cayuse Prairie School District #10 $11,674; Big Timber Elementary $10,852; Lincoln County High School $9,905; State median, under 1,000 students $16,778.5k15k25kBox Elder Public Schools$21,294Beaverhead County High School$16,794Darby School District 9$15,285Superior$14,978Thompson Falls Elementary$13,672Whitehall Elementary$12,485Red Lodge Elementary$12,104Cayuse Prairie School District #10$11,674Big Timber Elementary$10,852Lincoln County High School$9,905State median, under 1,000 students $16,778

Where the money came from

$6,072,000 in revenue: 28.4% state, 41.8% local and 29.8% federal. Total spending including $1,123,000 of capital outlay was $5,510,000, or $17,219 per student; the figure above leaves capital out.

Thompson Falls Elementary revenue by source, fiscal year 2022-23State $1,723,000; Local $2,537,000; Federal $1,812,000; total $6,072,000.
  • State$1,723,000 28%
  • Local$2,537,000 42%
  • Federal$1,812,000 30%

Source: NCES F-33 school district finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23: current expenditures for elementary and secondary education divided by fall membership; the state median covers 361 districts with fewer than 1,000 students in fall 2022. Revenue by source (TOTALREV, TFEDREV, TSTREV, TLOCREV).

Enrollment fell from 2022-23 to 2024-25

320 students in 2022-23, 315 students in 2023-24, 308 students in 2024-25, counted across the schools that reported each year.

Thompson Falls Elementary enrollment by school year2022-23: 320, 2023-24: 315, 2024-25: 30801002003004002022-233202023-243152024-25308
Thompson Falls Elementary enrollment by school year2022-23: 320, 2023-24: 315, 2024-25: 30801002003004002022-233202023-243152024-25308
Thompson Falls Elementary enrollment by school year2022-23: 320, 2023-24: 315, 2024-25: 30801002003004002022-233202023-243152024-25308
Thompson Falls Elementary enrollment by school year2022-23: 320, 2023-24: 315, 2024-25: 30801002003004002022-233202023-243152024-25308

Teachers and students per teacher

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Per teacher
2022-2332023.813.5
2023-2431523.813.2
2024-2530823.013.4

Source: NCES Common Core of Data membership and staff files, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25; sums over the schools reporting each year.

State test results, 2021-22

In 2021-22, the students tested in Thompson Falls Elementary scored proficient or above: 40-44% in reading and 35-39% in math, against 45.7% in reading and 35.2% in math across Montana. Each state writes its own test and sets its own proficiency bar, so compare these within Montana, not across states.

Students proficient or above, 2021-22
SubjectThis districtMontanaStudents tested
Reading and language arts40-44%45.7%185
Math35-39%35.2%183

Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results 2021-22, all students, from ED Data Express (the Data Rescue Project archive; ED has no 2022-23 result for this district): ED shows district results as ranges (for example 20-24%) to protect small groups.

1 elementary school, 240 students

SchoolStudentsPer teacherFree lunchTitle I, 2021‑22
Thompson Falls Elem Schl24014.583.3%Schoolwide program

Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25; Title I status CCD 2021-22, the last year NCES published it. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count; not reported: the school sent NCES no meal count.

1 middle school, 68 students

SchoolStudentsPer teacherFree lunchTitle I, 2021‑22
Thompson Falls 7-86810.585.3%Schoolwide program

Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25; Title I status CCD 2021-22, the last year NCES published it. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count; not reported: the school sent NCES no meal count.

Contact Thompson Falls Elementary

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, local education agency directory 2024-25. Enrollment, boundaries and school assignment are the district's to confirm.

What to look at next about Thompson Falls Elementary

  1. Montana districts by spending per studentThompson Falls Elementary ranks 259 of 361 Montana districts with fewer than 1,000 students in fall 2022 on current spending per student in fiscal year 2022-23 ($13,672).#259 of 361
  2. Every school district in MontanaThompson Falls Elementary is the number 99 by size of 398 Montana districts, with 320 students in fall 2022 (F-33).#99 of 398
  3. Superior School DistrictThe next larger Montana district: 324 students in fall 2022, $14,978 per student in fiscal year 2022-23.$14,978
  4. Big Timber ElementaryThe next smaller Montana district: 318 students in fall 2022, $10,852 per student in fiscal year 2022-23.$10,852
  5. Compare Thompson Falls Elementary with Superior School DistrictEnrollment, spending, revenue sources and schools, side by side.
  6. Find the school district for an addressA home's district decides which public schools it can enroll in.

Source: NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23 (spending per student and fall 2022 membership; ranks among the state's districts that reported them); NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (schools).

Questions about Thompson Falls Elementary

  1. How many schools and students are in Thompson Falls Elementary?
    2 schools were open in 2024-25 (1 elementary, 1 middle), enrolling 308 students, according to the NCES Common Core of Data.
  2. How much does Thompson Falls Elementary spend per student?
    $13,672 per student on current operations in fiscal year 2022-23 (NCES F-33), which leaves out construction and debt; the Montana median for districts with fewer than 1,000 students in fall 2022 is $16,778 and the U.S. figure is $16,260. Census Bureau figures for 2023-24 put it at $14,784 per student, up 8.1% on the year before (U.S. $17,619 that year).
  3. Where does Thompson Falls Elementary's money come from?
    $6,072,000 in revenue in fiscal year 2022-23: 28.4% state, 41.8% local and 29.8% federal (NCES F-33).
  4. How many children in Thompson Falls Elementary live in poverty?
    The Census Bureau estimates that 55 of the 334 children aged 5 to 17 living within the district's boundaries in 2024, 16.5%, were in families in poverty (Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). It is a model-based estimate for everyone living in the district, not a count of its students; the free-meal shares in the school tables are counts of enrolled students.
  5. How do students in Thompson Falls Elementary do on state tests?
    In 2021-22, the students tested in Thompson Falls Elementary scored proficient or above: 40-44% in reading and 35-39% in math, against 45.7% in reading and 35.2% in math across Montana. Montana's own test sets what proficient means, so results compare within the state, not across states. Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22.
  6. What is Thompson Falls Elementary's NCES district ID?
    3026070. Each of its schools' 12-digit NCES IDs begins with these seven digits.

Reading these figures: how to choose a school district, what Title I means and what an absenteeism rate means. They are for information and are not a substitute for the school's or district's own records.

Sources

Every federal file behind this record
  • NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25: directory, membership, staff and lunch files. nces.ed.gov
  • NCES Common Core of Data, 2021-22 school characteristics: Title I status. nces.ed.gov
  • Civil Rights Data Collection, 2021-22: AP courses, gifted programs, counselors, discipline. civilrightsdata.ed.gov
  • EDFacts, 2022-23: chronic absenteeism. ed.gov
  • EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22: reading and math proficiency for the district and its state (ED Data Express). eddataexpress.ed.gov
  • U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024: children aged 5 to 17 and those in families in poverty, by school district. census.gov
  • U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, fiscal year 2023-24: per pupil current spending for 2023-24 and 2022-23. census.gov
  • NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, fiscal year 2022-23: district spending and revenue. nces.ed.gov
  • U.S. Census Bureau geocoder and TIGER school districts: the district boundary used by the district finder. census.gov

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances Per pupil current spending by school system · FY 2023-24

Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey Revenue and expenditures by district · FY 2022-23

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25

Compiled from official source data by .