The top reported proficiency rate is 69% in Science. The lowest is 62% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on West Side Elementary
West Side Elementary is a two-grade intermediate school in Worland, Wyoming, serving only fourth and fifth graders as part of Washakie County School District #1. That narrow grade band makes it a transition point rather than a full elementary experience. Children arrive here after earlier grades elsewhere in the district and move on after a short stay, so the school's identity centers on bridging the gap between primary grades and middle school.
On state assessments through Wyoming's WY-TOPP test, the academic picture is mixed but leans solidly positive in several areas. Fourth graders perform well in math, with a clear majority reaching proficiency, and science results for the same grade are similarly strong. English language arts for fourth grade lands in a middling range, with a modest majority proficient. Fifth grade tells a different story. ELA proficiency climbs from the fourth-grade level, which is a good sign of growth in literacy. Fifth-grade math, though, drops notably from where fourth graders stood, with only about half of tested students reaching proficiency. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly whether the fifth-grade math dip reflects a curricular transition, a cohort effect, or something else. Across all tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency sits above the midpoint relative to districts in Washakie County, which is a small comparison set of two. Participation was full across every tested group.
Because the school stops at fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and that metric simply does not apply here. The same is true of chronic absenteeism and civil-rights data, which were not available in the records we reviewed. Information on special education enrollment and English learner status was also missing, so we cannot characterize those populations. Program offerings, staffing details, and discipline data were absent as well. These gaps are not unusual for a small two-grade school in a rural district, but they do limit the picture.
The peer environment is modest in size, with an enrollment that is small for a school covering just two grades. The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic minority and very small representation from other racial or ethnic groups. About two in five students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is below what many rural Wyoming schools see and suggests a working- and middle-class community rather than a deeply impoverished one. The school is not a charter or magnet, and no Title I status was reported.
Worland itself is the county seat of Washakie County and the commercial hub of the Big Horn Basin. The economy runs on agriculture, especially sugar beets and malt barley, along with oil and gas extraction and manufacturing. Major employers include Admiral Beverage Corporation, Wyoming Sugar Company, and Crown Cork & Seal. The city has a quiet, rural pace with a cost of living below the national average. The Big Horn River runs along the western edge, and a paved greenway trail follows it for walking and biking. Downtown sits along Big Horn Avenue with local shops, restaurants, and the county courthouse, while schools occupy separate campuses spread through residential neighborhoods and outlying areas. West Side sits on the south side of town near the railroad and industrial corridor, which gives it a different feel from the civic and commercial core.
The housing market in the school's zip code is affordable by both state and national standards. Home values sit well below the Wyoming state benchmark and the national benchmark, and the price-to-income ratio is favorable for buyers with median earnings. Values have been appreciating at a healthy clip year over year, so the market is active rather than stagnant, but entry costs remain low compared to most of the country. Rental data was not available, which limits the picture for families who are not buying. Worland's population has shown modest recovery after earlier declines, with limited new construction mostly concentrated on the southern outskirts near US Route 20. No large-scale housing developments are underway, so the community is stable rather than fast-growing.
For a family considering this school, the strengths are real fourth-grade math and science results, a jump in fifth-grade literacy, and full assessment participation. The fifth-grade math result is the clearest area to ask about. The broader community offers a small-town environment with genuine agricultural and industrial character, affordable housing, and outdoor access along the river. What we cannot tell from available data is how the school supports special populations, what programs or enrichment it offers, and how staffing compares to peer schools. Those are questions worth bringing directly to the district.
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