Enrollment
22
Montana · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Cut Bank, MT
Big Sky School
Federal NCES profile for Big Sky School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 300514000812
👥 S:T ratio 56
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 82
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Big Sky School earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median.
- #3 of 8
- schools in Cut Bank · Resource Index
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11:1
- students per teacher
- 22
- students enrolled
Big Sky School has class sizes near the Montana median. Computed live against every Montana school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Big Sky School ranks #3 of 8 schools in Cut Bank, MT.
School address
District: Browning Elem · Montana
NCES ID 300514000812 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
2.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11:1
vs 11.8:1 Montana avg
-7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Big Sky School compares with Montana and U.S. medians
What stands out at Big Sky School
Big Sky School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Cut Bank, Montana, enrolling 22 students.
At 11:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Montana median, within a few percentage points of the 11.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Enrollment of 22 puts it in the smaller third of Montana schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 826 scored Montana schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (100% of enrollment) (diversity index 0/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 88 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
The surrounding Browning Elem spends $23,537 per pupil, 22% above the Montana average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 59.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Cut Bank's public schools, it stands alongside H C Davis Elementary (209 students): Big Sky School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11:1 vs 11:1).
Browning Elem also operates Browning Middle School (368 students) and Kw-Vc Elementary (328 students) alongside Big Sky School.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Big Sky School compares
Big Sky School on the metrics families compare, against Montana and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Montana | Montana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11:1 | ▼ 7% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 22 | top 77% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11:1
Leaner classes than 83% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
22
Bigger than 3% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 41% in Montana - lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Funding equity
$23,537
per pupil, district-wide
- above Montana avg of $19,282
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.3 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Big Sky School is less mixed than the Montana school average of 23.6.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Browning Elem, which includes Big Sky School.
$23,537
Per student
+22%
vs Montana
Avg $19,282
+42%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 13.7%
State 26.6%
Federal 59.7%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Big Sky School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Browning Middle School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Kw-Vc Elementary | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Napi School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Browning Elementary | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Babb School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Big Sky School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 368
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 328
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 278
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 258
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 14
- Students per teacher
- 7:1
- Resource Index
- 63/100
Similar other schools in Cut Bank
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
H C Davis Elementary
Standard public school
209 students 11:1 students per teacher
Hidden Lake Elementary
Standard public school
26 students 13:1 students per teacher
Horizon Elementary
Standard public school
15 students 15:1 students per teacher
Glendale School
Standard public school
12 students 12:1 students per teacher
Zenith Elementary
Standard public school
11 students 11:1 students per teacher
Glacier Elementary School
Standard public school
10 students 10:1 students per teacher
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Montana, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~22 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Big Sky School's federal record.
- Compare Big Sky School against another school. Compare schools
- Browning Elem's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Big Sky School
How many students attend Big Sky School?
Big Sky School has 22 students enrolled. It is a public school in Cut Bank, MT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Big Sky School?
The student-teacher ratio at Big Sky School is 11:1, which is 7% lower than the Montana average of 11.8:1 and 30% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Big Sky School?
The largest demographic group at Big Sky School is White at 100.0% of enrollment, in Cut Bank, MT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Big Sky School?
Big Sky School has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Big Sky School rank among schools in Cut Bank?
By Resource Investment Index, Big Sky School ranks #3 of 8 schools in Cut Bank, MT. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Cut Bank on the city page.
Is Big Sky School a good school?
Big Sky School earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Browning Elem?
Besides Big Sky School, Browning Elem also operates Browning Middle School (368 students), Kw-Vc Elementary (328 students), and Napi School (278 students). See the Browning Elem district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.