The top reported proficiency rate is 36% in Science. The lowest is 25% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Promontory School of Expeditionary Learning
Promontory School of Expeditionary Learning is a public charter school in Perry, Utah, serving kindergarten through eighth grade. It is its own district, operating independently of the Box Elder School District that runs the area’s traditional public schools. The school sits on the western edge of Perry, a town that has shifted from its agricultural roots as part of Utah’s Fruit Belt into a suburban commuter community. Most working residents drive to jobs in Brigham City, Ogden, or the Thiokol complex, and the town’s housing market is tight, with steady growth as former orchards and dairies give way to residential subdivisions.
The school draws its enrollment of roughly mid-range size for a K-8 from Perry and likely the surrounding area, given the charter’s open-enrollment status. The student body is predominantly white, with a modest share of Hispanic students and a small number of students from other racial backgrounds. About a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that positions the school in a middle range economically for the area. While it is a public charter school, the available data does not specify a Title I designation, and no information was reported on the share of students with disabilities or those learning English, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about the support structures for these populations.
Academically, the school’s state test results in math, English language arts, and science for grades three through eight show proficiency rates that are below the median for districts in Box Elder County. Of the two districts in the county that have comparable testing data, Promontory lands at the lower end. Its proficiency index across tested subjects and grades was below the county midpoint. This does not tell the full story of the school’s Expeditionary Learning model, which emphasizes hands-on, project-based learning, outdoor experiences, and character development, a pedagogical choice that some families seek for its emphasis on engagement over test preparation. The school’s website or leadership would be the best source for understanding how this approach aligns with its assessment results, and a parent may want to look into this further with the school.
Because the school does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report. The school’s governance as a charter means it operates under a board that has flexibility in curriculum and staffing, and publicly reported information about recent changes or strategic priorities was not found, so those details are left out rather than guessed. The school’s setting in Perry means it is in a car-dependent town without a concentrated walkable core. Students who continue to high school will move on to schools in neighboring Brigham City or Willard, a transition that families may want to plan for. The town itself offers parks, hiking trails into Cache National Forest, and the Heritage Community Theatre, but lacks its own library or public transit.
This is a small charter school in a growing bedroom community, offering a distinctive Expeditionary Learning approach across the elementary and middle grades. Its test results are below the average for its county, and its student body is less diverse than the surrounding district’s. A family drawn to its project-based, outdoor-oriented model would want to understand how the school gauges academic progress beyond state testing and how it supports students who may need additional help, given that key metrics for special education and English learner services were not reported.
See more original research from School Decision →