Enrollment
217
Montana · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Colstrip, MT
Pine Butte Elementary Sch
Federal NCES profile for Pine Butte Elementary Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 53/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 300705000873
👥 S:T ratio 54
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 57
📋 Attendance 30
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Pine Butte Elementary Sch earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Montana schools.
- #2 of 3
- public schools in Colstrip · Resource Index
- 53
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.4:1
- students per teacher
- 217
- students enrolled
Pine Butte Elementary Sch has class sizes near the Montana median. Computed live against every Montana school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Pine Butte Elementary Sch ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Colstrip, MT.
School address
District: Colstrip Elem · Montana
NCES ID 300705000873 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.4:1
vs 11.8:1 Montana avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Pine Butte Elementary Sch compares with Montana and U.S. medians
What stands out at Pine Butte Elementary Sch
Pine Butte Elementary Sch is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Colstrip, Montana, enrolling 217 students.
At 11.4:1, 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 217 puts it in the larger third of Montana schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 826 scored Montana schools.
Its student body is led by White (47%) and American Indian / Alaska Native (36%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 64/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 217 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 22.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Its district, Colstrip Elem, also runs Frank Brattin Middle Schl (119 students).
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 Pine Butte Elementary Sch compares
Pine Butte Elementary Sch on the metrics families compare, against Montana and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Montana | Montana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.4:1 | ▼ 3% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 217 | top 30% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.4:1
Leaner classes than 80% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
217
Bigger than 21% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11.4:1
students per teacher
- 3% below state mean
Top 43% in Montana - lower ratio than 57% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
28.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$17,881
per pupil, district-wide
- below Montana avg of $19,282
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 217 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.6 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 46.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 35.9%
Hispanic or Latino 11.5%
Two or More 4.6%
African American 0.9%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 46.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 63.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 63.9, Pine Butte Elementary Sch is more mixed than the Montana school average of 23.6.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Colstrip Elem, which includes Pine Butte Elementary Sch.
$17,881
Per student
-7%
vs Montana
Avg $19,282
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.1%
State 35.9%
Federal 22.0%
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 Pine Butte Elementary Sch Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Brattin Middle Schl | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Pine Butte Elementary Sch's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 119
- Students per teacher
- 9.2:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
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 (~217 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Pine Butte Elementary Sch's federal record.
- Compare Pine Butte Elementary Sch against another school. Compare schools
- Colstrip 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 Pine Butte Elementary Sch
How many students attend Pine Butte Elementary Sch?
Pine Butte Elementary Sch has 217 students enrolled. It is a public school in Colstrip, MT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pine Butte Elementary Sch?
The student-teacher ratio at Pine Butte Elementary Sch is 11.4:1, which is 3% lower than the Montana average of 11.8:1 and 27% 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 Pine Butte Elementary Sch?
The largest demographic group at Pine Butte Elementary Sch is White at 46.5% of enrollment, in Colstrip, MT. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 63.9/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pine Butte Elementary Sch?
Pine Butte Elementary Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Pine Butte Elementary Sch rank among public schools in Colstrip?
By Resource Investment Index, Pine Butte Elementary Sch ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Colstrip, MT. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Colstrip on the city page.
Is Pine Butte Elementary Sch a good school?
Pine Butte Elementary Sch earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Montana schools. 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 Colstrip Elem?
Besides Pine Butte Elementary Sch, Colstrip Elem also operates Frank Brattin Middle Schl (119 students). See the Colstrip 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.