The top reported proficiency rate is 36% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on La Crescent Montessori & Stem Schoo
La Crescent Montessori & STEM Schoo operates as a single district in Houston County, serving kindergarten through twelfth grade across two schools: an elementary-level academy and a secondary school. The district is very small, and its student body is nearly entirely white, with a very small share of students identifying as two or more races. No data on economic disadvantage, special education, or English learner status was available.
State assessment results are limited, which is typical for a district of this size because small group counts are often suppressed to protect student privacy. Only the fourth-grade cohort had reported proficiency rates in both math and reading, and those rates were modest. For most other tested grades in math, reading, and science, the results are suppressed, so a broader picture of academic performance is not available from state testing alone. The district’s overall proficiency index, which averages the reported rates across tested subjects and grades, places it in the bottom quartile among Houston County’s districts. A parent may want to ask the school directly about how it tracks student progress and where its students stand relative to grade-level expectations in the grades where state data is not reported.
The district has no reported four-year graduation rate in the data we examined, so that metric cannot be characterized. Because the district includes a high school, the absence of this figure is notable. Chronic absenteeism, however, is above the midpoint among county districts, meaning a higher share of students miss school regularly compared with some of its neighbors. Per-pupil spending falls in the lower range among the county’s districts, which may reflect the district’s small scale and operational choices.
The district’s name signals a focus on Montessori pedagogy and STEM programming, but the available data does not include details on course offerings, program enrollment, or curriculum structure. Publicly reported information describes the school’s history and approach, but we found no recent substantive changes or initiatives that would clearly affect a parent’s decision. The district appears stable in that regard.
Because no locale brief was provided, the community context around the district is not described here. The district is situated in Houston County, and a family considering it would need to look into the specific town or rural area served.
For a family drawn to a very small district with a Montessori and STEM identity, this may be an attractive option. The academic data is thin, and the proficiency levels for the one grade where results are reportable are below county averages, so a parent would want to investigate further how the school measures learning, what supports are in place for students who need them, and what high school outcomes look like. The chronic absenteeism rate is a soft spot worth asking about, as is the absence of a reported graduation rate. Without more information on programs, staffing, and student outcomes, the picture is incomplete, but the district’s distinctive combination of Montessori and STEM, its small size, and its nearly homogeneous student body are plain characteristics that will suit some families and not others.
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