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Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle

Public Grades 5-8
159th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 439 Alabama Middle Schools
Better than 64% of Alabama middle schools
Summary

Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle is a public middle school located in Grant, Alabama, serving grades 5-8 with a total enrollment of 364 students. The school is part of the Marshall County School District, which is ranked 81 out of 135 districts in Alabama and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle consistently ranks in the top half of Alabama middle schools, typically between 97-176 out of 400-440 schools, and has maintained a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger for most years, indicating average academic performance compared to other Alabama middle schools. The school outperforms the Marshall County and Alabama state averages in English/Language Arts, with proficiency rates 5-20 percentage points higher. In Mathematics, the school's proficiency rates are 5-15 percentage points higher than the county, though still below the state average. However, the school faces a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from around 5.5% in 2020-2021 to 17.9% in 2022-2023, which is higher than the state average.

When compared to nearby schools, Challenger Middle School and Mountain Gap Middle School in the Huntsville City district consistently outperform Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle in academic measures, ranking among the top 15% of Alabama middle schools. In contrast, Albertville Middle School in the Albertville City district has a lower overall ranking and academic performance compared to Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle, despite serving a higher proportion of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds.

376
Students ?
17.8
Student/teacher ratio ?
$7,218
Per pupil spending ?
35.1%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 6077 Main St
       Grant, AL  35747

(256) 728-5950

District: Marshall County


Students who attend Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle usually attend:

High:    Kate D Smith DAR High School

Feeder schools for Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle:

Elementary:    Kate D Smith DAR Elementary School
Racial breakdown:

White:
88.0%
Hispanic:
5.6%
Two or more races:
2.4%
more
 See top rated Alabama middle schools

 Compare Kate Duncan Smith DAR Middle to nearby middle schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Rebounding — 59th percentile in 2022 → 64th in 2025
Strengths
Ranking is rebounding — up to 64th (2025) from a 59th-percentile low (2022)
Above the Alabama median (64th percentile)
Worth a look
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school44%
District avg33%
Alabama avg42%
159th of 439
Alabama public middle schools ?
Top 36%▼ down 8 pts since 2015
From top 28% (2015) to top 36% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Alabama Middle Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
1st of 2Middle Schools in the Marshall County
81st of 135Marshall County among Alabama districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202559.2159 of 43963.8%★★★☆☆
202462.3142 of 44267.9%★★★☆☆
202359.1154 of 43764.8%★★★☆☆
202254.5176 of 43259.3%★★★☆☆
202158.0155 of 44064.8%★★★☆☆
201963.3136 of 43768.9%★★★☆☆
201872.797 of 42377.1%★★★★☆
201767.0112 of 43274.1%★★★★☆
201656.0175 of 43259.5%★★★☆☆
201563.6120 of 43072.1%★★★★☆
201470.392 of 43879.0%★★★★☆
201371.098 of 43677.5%★★★★☆
201272.995 of 43678.2%★★★★☆
201176.179 of 43581.8%★★★★☆
201082.350 of 43588.5%★★★★☆
200972.787 of 42579.5%★★★★☆
200875.566 of 41784.2%★★★★☆
200774.378 of 41281.1%★★★★☆
200678.849 of 40988.0%★★★★☆
200566.3102 of 41575.4%★★★★☆
200444.5232 of 40743.0%★★☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202551.8186 of 41555.2%★★★☆☆
202457.6155 of 42663.6%★★★☆☆
202362.7130 of 41768.8%★★★☆☆
202264.9121 of 42371.4%★★★★☆
202166.1102 of 41575.4%★★★★☆
201971.285 of 39978.7%★★★★☆
201873.980 of 39279.6%★★★★☆
201758.2140 of 38063.2%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202555.9161 of 42862.4%★★★☆☆
202457.2159 of 43763.6%★★★☆☆
202338.2257 of 41037.3%★★☆☆☆
202240.1259 of 42138.5%★★☆☆☆
202158.3147 of 41564.6%★★★☆☆
201961.3133 of 39666.4%★★★☆☆
201869.2100 of 39674.7%★★★★☆
201760.4100 of 34971.3%★★★★☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202563.0123 of 42270.9%★★★★☆
202464.0124 of 42871.0%★★★★☆
202355.9159 of 41962.1%★★★☆☆
202244.1226 of 42747.1%★★☆☆☆
202144.1227 of 41845.7%★★☆☆☆
201949.5206 of 39948.4%★★☆☆☆
201868.8104 of 39773.8%★★★★☆
201771.974 of 38080.5%★★★★☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202530.4213 of 27121.4%★☆☆☆☆
202449.9109 of 28161.2%★★★☆☆
202368.049 of 28182.6%★★★★☆
202241.1140 of 25645.3%★★☆☆☆
202140.4160 of 27441.6%★★☆☆☆
201931.9183 of 25428.0%★☆☆☆☆
201849.5103 of 22353.8%★★★☆☆
201738.1116 of 19540.5%★★☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202544.4198 of 37747.5%★★☆☆☆
202446.5180 of 37351.7%★★★☆☆
202341.7199 of 37046.2%★★☆☆☆
202237.6224 of 37640.4%★★☆☆☆
202142.9193 of 36947.7%★★☆☆☆
201946.2162 of 34352.8%★★★☆☆
201855.9121 of 33163.4%★★★☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Male (2025)71st percentile+7 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)62nd percentile~ school
Female (2025)55th percentile-9 vs school
White (2025)47th percentile-16 vs school
Special Education (2025)21st percentile-42 vs school
By subject vs Alabama (2024-2025) ?
English62%+6 vs state
Science34%-7 vs state
Mathematics28%~ state avg

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Latest Alabama data All new data »
2024–25 attendance data & graduation ratesDec 27, 2025
2024–25 Summative Assessment scoresAug 14, 2025
2021–22 through 2023–24 attendance data & graduation ratesDec 2, 2024
2016–17 through 2018–19 dropout rates & graduation ratesOct 7, 2024


SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Alabama State Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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