The reported proficiency rate for English language arts is 51%.
Original Research by School Decision on Independent Scholar
Independent Scholar sits within the Riverside School District in Chattaroy, an unincorporated crossroads community in Spokane County roughly a short drive north of Spokane. The area has a rural valley character, anchored by the confluence of the Little Spokane River and Deer Creek, and is oriented around a highway crossroads. A formal downtown does not exist; the elementary school serves as a local civic landmark. The school itself is classified as an alternative school, serving students from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Its enrollment is quite small, with roughly a hundred students spread across all grade levels. Each grade has only a handful of students, with the largest groupings in the upper elementary and middle school years. The student body is predominantly white, with a modest share of Hispanic students, and a very small number of Asian, American Indian, and two-or-more-race students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic need among the families served. Independent Scholar reported state testing results for the most recent year, though the data is fragmented. In English language arts, proficiency rates were reported for several grade levels. In third grade, roughly two out of five students met the bar. In sixth grade, the share was similar, around two out of five. By seventh grade, approximately two-thirds of students scored proficient. At least one other grade level and science testing results were suppressed, meaning the number of students tested was too small to report publicly. For math, every grade-level result was suppressed. An overall proficiency index, which combines scores across tested subjects and grades, places this school above the midpoint when compared to other districts in Spokane County. A single-year data point for all grades combined shows an overall ELA proficiency rate of roughly two out of five students, a math rate below one in five, and a science rate around half. Because this is a single year of data with no prior trend, it is impossible to tell whether these results represent a typical year or an anomaly. No graduation rate was available. The district brief turned up no recent bond, levy, or curriculum changes to report. The lack of a graduation rate and the suppression of so many testing results are both consistent with the school’s very small size, but a parent who wants a full academic picture should ask the school directly about its high school completion outcomes and how it measures student progress in math and science. The programs and course access data for the school were also absent; families should confirm what secondary course offerings, including any dual-credit or career pathways, are available to older students. Housing in the area is valued close to the statewide median, with home prices that are modestly affordable at current mortgage rates. The rural setting means that getting around requires a car, and walkability is limited. For a family considering this school, the key takeaway is that it is a very small alternative school serving a high-need population in a rural setting. The academic profile is mixed, with some grade-level ELA results that approach the state average and math results that are very low, but the single year of data and the suppression of many scores make it hard to generalize. The school fits a family looking for a small, alternative learning environment where teachers know every student, and where the student body is small enough that individual attention is a given. It is not a school that will produce the same breadth of programming or the same kind of standardized test data as a large comprehensive high school, and that is by design. A parent should ask about the school’s specific mission as an alternative program, what kind of student it serves best, and what the high school completion picture looks like for its graduates.
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