Summary:
In zip code 72364, there is a single middle school, Marion Seventh Grade Academy, which serves exclusively 7th-grade students in Marion, Arkansas, with an enrollment of 287 students and a high rate of economic disadvantage, as 75.26% qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Marion Seventh Grade Academy stands out for its unique grade configuration as a "Seventh Grade Academy," which is uncommon and suggests a focused approach to the transition from elementary to high school. Despite this, the school has consistently ranked in the bottom 15% of Arkansas middle schools, with a state ranking in the 14th percentile for the 2025-2026 school year. The school is part of the Marion School District, which itself ranks in the bottom tier of districts in the state (12th percentile).
A key finding is the significant year-over-year academic improvement across all subjects from 2024-2025 to 2025-2026, with proficiency rates increasing by 6 to 11 percentage points. For example, math proficiency rose from 21.1% to 32.0%, and English Language Arts from 14.3% to 20.4%. However, these rates remain well below state averages. Interestingly, the school's math proficiency (32%) actually exceeded the district's overall math proficiency (21.7%), suggesting strong 7th-grade math instruction. The recent sharp improvement could indicate that the academy model is beginning to yield positive results, though further data is needed to confirm this trend.
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