Loy School

Loy School is one of the well-populated K-5 schools in Great Falls, Montana, overseen by Great Falls Elem, with 392 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 6. Compared to the state average of about 167 students per school, that is 135% bigger than typical.

Great Falls Elem runs 18 schools in total, collectively educating 7,094 students. Loy School is one of those campuses.

Looking at the student body, Loy School lists that the largest single group is White, at 61% of enrollment; the rest consists of 18% Hispanic, 11% multiracial, 7% Black. By comparison, Cascade County as a whole is about 84% White, so the school skews visibly less White than its surroundings.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 22 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 17.6:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 11.9:1 average. Roughly 34% of students at Loy School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Cascade County (around 54%), the school's rate is south of typical.

In the broader community, the surrounding county (Cascade County) reports that the typical household earns roughly $67,690 per year, about 28% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. In all, Cascade County runs 45 public schools (combined enrollment of about 11,577 students), of which Loy School is one.

Chief Joseph School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.6 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools.

Geographically, the school is in an inner-city area.

Looking at the recent track record. Loy School's enrollment has changed only slightly since 2018, when it stood at 388 (now 392). Hispanic enrollment moved from 12% to 18% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio widened from 14.4:1 in 2018 to 17.6:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, recent activity here tends to focus on enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.