The top reported proficiency rate is 40% in English language arts. The lowest is 34% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Dry Hollow Elementary School
Dry Hollow Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the North Wasco County School District 21. The school is located in The Dalles, the county seat of Wasco County, a city that functions as a regional trading and commercial hub along the Columbia River. The local economy blends agriculture, particularly cherries and vineyards, with technology-sector employment anchored by a large Google data center, as well as the medical center and the Army Corps of Engineers. The city has two historic districts with many properties on the National Register, and the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area surrounds it. The school itself is one of several elementary buildings in the district, and the district is a major local employer.
Dry Hollow enrolls a student body that is roughly even between students who identify as white and those who identify as Hispanic, with small shares from other racial and ethnic groups including two or more races, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and Black. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of economic need that is common in this community and informs the school’s support services. The school is the size one would expect for an elementary serving these grades in a small city, with balanced class groups across kindergarten through fifth grade.
Academically, the school’s state assessment results from the most recent testing year show a mixed picture by subject and grade. In English language arts, proficiency rates are around the mark where about one in three students meet the standard in third and fourth grade, while fifth graders reach a higher level, with more than half scoring proficient. In math, proficiency rates are lower across all tested grades, with roughly one in four to one in three students meeting the bar, and fifth graders again performing somewhat better than the earlier grades. Science is tested only in fifth grade, and there the proficiency rate is similar to math for that grade. When all subjects and grades are averaged together into a single proficiency index, Dry Hollow’s performance places it in the top quartile relative to the school-level data for districts in Wasco County. This is a single year of data, so no trend is available; a parent may want to ask the school how these results compare to prior years.
The school operates as a traditional public school with no charter or magnet designation. Information on special education services, English learner support, class sizes, and discipline was not available in the data reviewed. Housing in the area reflects the broader Columbia Gorge market. Home values and rents in The Dalles are below the statewide benchmark, and the cost of buying a home relative to local incomes is somewhat less strained than in the Portland metro area, though still a significant factor for families. The community has seen technology-driven investment from Google and expansion at Columbia Gorge Community College, but no specific major housing developments were surfaced in the research, and the district itself reported no major parent-relevant changes in recent years.
Dry Hollow Elementary offers a standard elementary program in a community with a diverse economic and cultural mix. Its academic results vary by grade and subject, with a strong point in fifth-grade reading and a need for attention in math across the board. The school’s standing compared with other local districts is favorable, but a family considering this school would want to follow up with the school directly about its approach to math instruction, its support for students learning English, and any recent initiatives aimed at improving achievement in the early grades.
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