The top reported proficiency rate is 27% in Science. The lowest is 21% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Tannehill
Tannehill is a small Oklahoma district serving only prekindergarten through eighth grade. That means there is no high school within the district, so families with older students will need to plan for where their child will attend ninth grade and beyond, typically by choosing a neighboring district or a transfer option. The district operates a single school, Tannehill Public School, which covers all grades it serves.
With an enrollment that is small for a district covering this grade span, the school environment is intimate. The student body is predominantly White, with a substantial share of American Indian students, followed by students who identify as two or more races and a small Hispanic population. Reliable counts for students with disabilities and English learners were not available in the data, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about the specific supports it offers for those groups. Information about the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals was also missing, leaving an incomplete picture of the economic background of the student body.
Academic achievement data comes from Oklahoma’s state assessments, but interpreting it requires caution because the student groups in each tested grade are very small. Many proficiency rates were suppressed by the state to protect student privacy. Where rates were reported, they varied noticeably by grade and subject. In English language arts, roughly a quarter to a third of students met the proficient or above benchmark in third and fourth grade, but the rate was lower in sixth grade and lower still in eighth grade. In the grades where science results were reported, just over a quarter of fifth graders reached proficiency; the eighth-grade science rate was suppressed. Math proficiency rates were suppressed entirely across all tested grades, so no direct comparison is possible there. When the district’s overall performance is viewed through a single index that averages the reported proficiency rates across all tested subjects and grades, it lands above the midpoint among Pittsburg County’s districts. That index shows the district performing better than the county median, though well below the top end of the county range. A parent may want to look into how the school’s approach to instruction and support varies across grade levels and subjects, given the uneven pattern in the small numbers that were reported.
The chronic absenteeism rate, which measures how many students miss a significant number of school days, is somewhat lower than the county median. That suggests attendance is a relative strength for this district compared with its local peers. Spending per student falls in the middle range among Pittsburg County’s districts, on the lower side of that middle range. Neither high nor notably low spending stands out here.
Housing in the area the district draws from is affordable relative to both the state and national benchmarks. Home values are well below the Oklahoma average, which might appeal to families seeking lower-cost rural living. The two zip codes contributing to the district’s housing market are largely rural, one covering a small town and the other anchored by the larger city of McAlester, so the housing stock likely ranges from countryside properties to more suburban-style homes.
Publicly available information about recent district-level changes – such as referendums, curriculum shifts, or property-tax adjustments – was not found, so the narrative cannot speak to any new initiatives or financial developments beyond the data already described. Because the district ends at eighth grade, the middle school years become an important transition point. Parents should consider what high school options exist in the area, whether through open enrollment in nearby districts, private schools, or other arrangements, and ask the district about any articulation agreements or guidance it provides for families making that next step.
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