The top reported proficiency rate is 47% in Science. The lowest is 0% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Roundup Elementary
Roundup Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade in the small rural town of Roundup, county seat of Musselshell County. The school sits within a community rooted historically in coal mining and agriculture, with a more recent presence of Amazon supply chain prep centers. US Routes 12 and 87 converge on Main Street and 1st Avenue West, forming the primary commercial corridor. The town’s population peaked decades ago and has since declined, though the reopening of a local coal mine and its recent federal expansion approval suggest some economic activity. The town has faced flooding and wildfire damage in its history. Housing values here run notably lower than state and national benchmarks, and have seen a recent decline, making the area relatively affordable by Montana standards.
Nearly all of the school’s roughly three hundred students are White, with a small representation of Hispanic students, a smaller number of American Indian or Alaska Native students, and very small numbers of Asian, Black, and multiracial students. Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility exceeds six in ten students, indicating a high level of economic need in the community. The school does not report data on students with disabilities or English learners, so a parent may wish to ask about those populations and available services directly.
Roundup Elementary is an early-grades school ending at sixth grade, so there is no graduation rate to report and no high school course offerings to evaluate. State testing data for math and English language arts was reported for the most recent school year, but no students in the tested grades were recorded as tested, which is unusual. A parent would want to ask the school directly about its assessment participation. Science testing in grades three through eight showed that just under half of tested students scored at the proficient level or above. The data does not allow a meaningful comparison to other schools in Musselshell County, as the cohort for that comparison was too small.
The district, Roundup Elem, operates only this elementary school; students continue their education at the separate Roundup High School after sixth grade. No recent parent-relevant changes such as referendum votes, curriculum shifts, or property tax measures were identified for the district in publicly available material, so a family moving to the area may want to contact the district office to learn about current priorities and any planned changes.
This is a small, rural elementary school serving a community with a long history in resource extraction and agriculture, where the housing market is affordable and the student population shows high economic need. The school has incomplete state testing data, which is a gap a parent should investigate further with the school itself. For families who value a small-town setting and are looking for an elementary program that feeds into a separate high school, Roundup Elementary fits the profile.
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