The top reported proficiency rate is 24% in English language arts. The lowest is 16% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Northside Elementary School
Northside Elementary School is a regular public school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Montrose, Colorado, part of the Montrose County School District Re-1J. It is one of several elementary schools in the city, and its enrollment is smaller than many suburban elementary schools of its grade span. The school sits in a mix of residential and commercial neighborhoods in a city that functions as the county seat and the second-largest municipality in western Colorado.
Academically, Northside’s state testing results show that in math, English language arts, and science, the share of students reaching proficiency is modest. The school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Montrose County, which is the comparison set used here. Participation rates on the assessments were very high, meaning the results represent nearly all students. The state tests cover third through fifth grade, so every student at Northside takes them at some point during their years there. A parent considering this school may want to discuss with the school how it supports students who are not yet meeting proficiency benchmarks and what interventions are in place.
Student demographics show a school that serves a population with substantial economic need: a large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Hispanic and white, with smaller shares of students who are two or more races, Black, Asian, and American Indian or Alaska Native. Data on the number of students with disabilities and English learners was not reported in the available records, so those details are a gap a family might want to clarify with the school directly.
Montrose itself offers a particular context for families. The city has a historic downtown and a growing outdoor recreation economy, with fly-fishing and other outdoor product manufacturers headquartered there. Housing is more affordable than many parts of Colorado, and the city has seen notable growth in population and infrastructure investment in recent years, including a river restoration project and a new recreation center. The built environment is largely auto-oriented, though there is a bicycle-friendly designation and a trail system. Schools are spread through residential neighborhoods rather than clustered downtown. The loss of a major manufacturing employer in 2021 was a setback, but new commercial development has followed, and the city remains an economic hub for the broader Uncompahgre Valley.
At the district level, two long-term shifts are underway that will affect Northside. The district is moving to a Mastery Learning system, replacing traditional grading with proficiency scales that aim to reflect actual academic understanding. This is a multi-year transition with full adoption targeted for a future school year. The district has also partnered with an outside organization to overhaul its intervention systems and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, with the goal of reducing over-identification for special education and improving equitable access. Both changes represent structural shifts in how students are assessed and supported, and families should be aware of these when evaluating the school’s approach.
Northside Elementary does not have data available on discipline, staffing ratios, attendance, or chronic absenteeism, so those aspects of the school’s environment are not possible to characterize here. The grade band means there is no graduation rate to report. For a school of this type, missing data in some areas is common, but a parent may want to ask the school directly about class sizes, teacher stability, and how the school addresses behavior and attendance. Overall, Northside is a school in a growing, relatively affordable western Colorado city, serving a high-need student population with academic results that fall below the middle of the pack among Montrose County districts. The district’s ongoing reforms in grading and intervention may shape the school’s trajectory, but the current evidence points to a school where supporting students to meet grade-level standards is a central challenge.
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