Summary
East Middle is a public middle school located in Saint Louis, Missouri, serving 258 students in grade 8 as part of the Hazelwood School District. The school consistently performs below state and district averages in proficiency rates for 8th-grade assessments in Mathematics, Science, and English Language Arts, with proficiency rates ranging from 21.3% to 42% compared to state averages of 32.7% to 42.2%. East Middle also has significantly higher chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 38.2% to 54.5%, compared to surrounding schools.
Despite the school's academic challenges, it performs relatively well in supporting certain subgroups, such as African American students and students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, ranking 20th out of 143 Missouri middle schools for African American students and 110th out of 369 Missouri middle schools for low-socioeconomic status students. However, the school's high spending per student, ranging from $13,487 to $15,209, does not seem to translate into improved academic outcomes, suggesting the need for a re-evaluation of resource allocation and spending priorities.
The challenges faced by East Middle are not unique, as the nearby schools, such as Central Middle, Southeast Middle, and Ferguson Middle, also struggle with low academic performance, high chronic absenteeism, and high percentages of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. This suggests that the issues at East Middle may be indicative of broader systemic challenges within the Hazelwood and Ferguson-Florissant school districts.
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