The top reported proficiency rate is 39% in Math. The lowest is 31% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Hollister Elem.
Hollister Elementary serves students in second through fifth grade in the Hollister R-V district, a small school system tied to the town of Hollister in Taney County, adjacent to the Branson tourism area. The school is located on State Highway BB, on a campus that also houses the district’s middle school, high school, and early childhood center. This clustering of buildings along a highway corridor is the daily reality for families; the historic Downing Street downtown area is separate from the school grounds.
The school enrolls roughly four hundred students. The student body is predominantly white, with a sizable Hispanic population and small numbers of students who identify as two or more races, Black, or Asian. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. This is the central socioeconomic context for the school.
On the Missouri Assessment Program tests, results vary noticeably by grade and subject. In third-grade English language arts, something in the neighborhood of half of students scored proficient or above. By fifth grade, that share dipped to roughly three in ten. In math, fourth graders posted a stronger result, with about half reaching proficiency, but fifth graders fell to roughly one in four. Science, tested only in fifth grade, showed a similar figure. When the school’s overall proficiency across all tested grades and subjects is compared to other elementary-level attendance areas within Taney County, it lands in the bottom quarter among the districts that report data. That is a soft spot a parent will want to look into further with the school, particularly to understand how the trajectory from third to fifth grade is being addressed.
Because this is an elementary school that ends at fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and data on chronic absenteeism and discipline was not available. The school’s status as a regular public school means it follows standard district and state curriculum frameworks.
The Hollister area has seen modest but steady population growth over the past decade and rising home values, typical of a community adjacent to a tourism economy. Housing costs in the surrounding zip code are near the state median but below the national median. The town has a low cost of living index. The district passed a bond increase that funded a remodel at the early childhood center and upgrades at the high school—capital work that families currently using the elementary building may see indirectly through the district’s overall facility condition.
For families considering this school, the core picture is of a small, highway-accessible elementary serving a community with significant economic diversity. Academic proficiency is at its strongest in the early tested grade, third, and trends downward by fifth grade, a pattern worth exploring with the school. The district’s recent capital investment in other buildings suggests facility attention, though no specific details on the elementary building itself were found. The school sits within easy reach of Branson’s amenities and employment, but the immediate setting is a low-density corridor without the walkability of a compact downtown. This is a school for a family that wants a neighborhood elementary in a growing exurban area, with the understanding that the academic trajectory in upper elementary will need attention.
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