Five Flathead County school districts received overall grades of B− or C—the lowest marks among the graded districts in Niche’s current county listing. Four share the B− grade, expanding this comparison beyond three districts.
The 2027 evaluations show some meaningful contrasts: one district earned an A− for teachers, while another received a B for academics.
Local reporting also identifies changes families would encounter now, including new administrators, literacy instruction and curriculum reviews.
Cayuse Prairie Elementary School District — Overall Niche Grade: B−
Cayuse Prairie serves a rural community along Lake Blaine Road east of Kalispell, with a grade span extending from preschool through eighth grade. Its 2024–25 federal enrollment record lists 311 students.
Reading Results Outpace Math
Cayuse Prairie’s current Niche profile awards the district a B for academics and B− for teachers, alongside its B− overall grade. The profile lists a student-teacher ratio of 15:1.
Its reported proficiency figures are 52% in reading and 37% in math. Niche identifies those results as coming from Montana’s 2023–24 assessment program, so they describe an earlier testing period than the evaluation’s 2027 label.
The difference between subjects makes math a useful starting point for a closer look. Reading performance was stronger, but neither percentage explains how individual students progressed or which skills proved most difficult.
New Leadership and Several Routes to Support
The district began 2026–27 with Christy Bortz as superintendent and principal and Paxton Doty as assistant principal. In her official welcome message, Bortz describes a background that includes nine years as an instructional coach and an emphasis on supporting classroom teaching.
That leadership transition is relevant to families following instructional priorities and communication this year. It does not, by itself, establish that student outcomes have changed.
The district’s counseling program offers individual meetings, small groups and classroom counseling, with support addressing learning, friendships and future goals. Together, those services describe a school experience that extends beyond the two proficiency percentages.
Columbia Falls Elementary School District — Overall Niche Grade: B−
Columbia Falls’ elementary district includes Glacier Gateway Elementary, Ruder Elementary and Columbia Falls Junior High. It serves preschool through eighth grade; the community’s high school belongs to a separate district.
The National Center for Education Statistics reports 1,505 students for 2024–25, making this the largest district featured here.
A District Grade Covers Different School Experiences
Columbia Falls’ Niche profile gives it B− for academics, C+ for teachers and B for clubs and activities. Its listed student-teacher ratio is 15:1.
The profile reports 47% reading proficiency and 31% math proficiency, identifying both as 2023–24 assessment figures. Math is the weaker subject in that snapshot.
There is also variation within the district: the current profile displays a B− overall grade for Ruder Elementary and a C for Glacier Gateway Elementary.
Those school grades do not determine this district selection, but they demonstrate why a family’s assigned school deserves a separate look.
A districtwide B− cannot describe every classroom or building equally well.
Changes Reach Both Elementary and Junior High Students
For 2026–27, Glacier Gateway introduced a fifth-grade leadership team, while the junior high added Into Literature for sixth-grade English language arts, according to the Daily Inter Lake’s back-to-school reporting.
These are specific changes in student participation and instruction, rather than evidence of an already completed academic turnaround.
The district’s published needs analysis also identifies Title I intervention, gifted education, school-based mental health services and student and family advocates among its supports.
For families, the practical question is which services a particular school provides and how students gain access.
Evergreen Elementary School District — Overall Niche Grade: B−
Evergreen serves the community near Kalispell through preschool and eighth grade. Its federal district record lists 645 students in 2024–25.
The district includes East Evergreen Elementary and Evergreen Junior High, with the Crossroads program also part of its educational services.
Teachers Receive a Higher Mark
Evergreen’s current Niche evaluation gives teachers a B+, above its B− overall and academic grades. Clubs and activities receive a B.
That distinction matters: the overall result does not mean every evaluated part of the district received the same assessment.
Niche reports 43% reading proficiency and 32% math proficiency from 2023–24. Those figures identify academic concerns even alongside the stronger teacher category.
The profile’s 13:1 student-teacher ratio describes enrollment relative to full-time-equivalent teaching staff. It is not a promise that each class contains 13 children.
Literacy Work Continues Across Schools
The Daily Inter Lake’s 2026–27 school guide reports that East Evergreen and the junior high are continuing a Montana Reads grant program. The junior high also welcomed a literacy interventionist and instructional coach for fifth and sixth grades.
That provides a concrete instructional development to follow, although the announcement does not establish the program’s effect on proficiency.
Families also have tools for looking beyond an annual district summary. Evergreen’s official website provides access to state assessment results through the Kite parent portal and links to reading and math resources for different grade levels.
After school, the district partners with the Boys & Girls Club of Glacier Country, with transportation from East Evergreen and the junior high, according to the same local guide.
That arrangement can be consequential for working families evaluating the school day from morning arrival through afternoon pickup.
Swan River Elementary School District — Overall Niche Grade: B−
Swan River serves a small rural school community in the Bigfork area. Its federal directory entry identifies a preschool-through-eighth-grade district, while the school describes its core program as K–8.
Niche’s current profile lists 158 students and a 12:1 student-teacher ratio.
An A− for Teachers Accompanies Uneven Results
Swan River receives an A− in Niche’s teacher category, contrasting with B− for academics and B for clubs and activities.
Its reported 2023–24 proficiency figures show a substantial difference between subjects: 52% in reading and 27% in math. Math proficiency therefore warrants attention even though the teacher category is a relative strength.
These measures describe different things. The teacher grade is Niche’s combined evaluation, while proficiency records the share meeting a particular assessment threshold.
For a family examining this district, both deserve consideration: what instruction looks like day to day, and what students are demonstrating in the subject where the reported results are weaker.
Counseling Is Part of Classroom Instruction
Swan River’s school counseling program describes support for academic, social and emotional development. Its website also provides a counseling request route and resources for families.
The school explains that classroom lessons deliver its counseling curriculum, using the American School Counselor Association’s framework for academic, career and social-emotional development.
That means counseling includes instruction delivered to classes, alongside opportunities to request support. It is a tangible part of the school’s approach, although the existence of a curriculum alone does not establish its effectiveness.
The combination is distinctive: a small district, a comparatively strong teacher evaluation and a clear academic concern in math.
Helena Flats Elementary School District — Overall Niche Grade: C
Helena Flats serves the rural Kalispell-area community around Helena Flats Road, with preschool through eighth grade. Its 2024–25 federal record lists 293 students.
Its C is the lowest verifiable overall grade in Niche’s current county listing.
Academic Results Identify a Need for Support
Helena Flats’ current Niche profile awards a C for academics and a B for teachers. The listed student-teacher ratio is 16:1.
Niche reports 37% reading proficiency and 27% math proficiency, again identifying the assessment period as 2023–24. In both subjects, fewer than half of the assessed students met the proficiency threshold.
The district has documented a targeted response to students needing additional help. Its 2025–26 Title I letter describes using Aimsweb and classroom assessments to identify needs, followed by individual and small-group reading and math support.
The letter says that assistance generally occurs without disrupting core instruction. It describes how support is organized, rather than reporting a measured improvement.
A New Principal and Curriculum Under Review
Lauren Smith became principal for 2026–27, and the school was reviewing science and writing curricula for possible piloting this year, according to the Daily Inter Lake.
Reviewing materials is an earlier step than adopting and evaluating a new curriculum. Families following that work should distinguish proposed trials from changes already operating in classrooms.
The district’s staff directory also identifies counseling, special education and a school-based outpatient therapist.
Those services add useful detail to the district’s support structure, particularly for families whose concerns involve more than academic instruction.
Across the Flathead, the Testing Timeline Matters
The selected grades sit within a broader field that includes an A for Somers, B+ grades for Fair-Mont-Egan and Kalispell, and a B for Flathead High School District.
Four of the five featured districts still receive B− overall marks; “lowest” here is a relative description.
Under Niche’s 2027 district methodology, overall grades combine academics, teacher measures, culture and diversity, family feedback, resources, activities and sports. They are Niche evaluations, separate from Montana’s accountability determinations.
The proficiency timeline requires particular care. Montana made MAST its statewide general assessment for grades 3–8 in 2024–25, and its technical report says those results cannot be directly compared with previous years’ scores and achievement levels.
Consequently, a difference between an older percentage on Niche and a newer state report does not automatically establish improvement or decline. Families should check the test, year and student group before drawing that conclusion.
