Best Public Schools in Magnolia, DE

The city of Magnolia, Delaware, is home to just two schools within the highly-rated Caesar Rodney School District, which ranks in the 85th percentile statewide, and these schools serve distinctly different grade levels: Magnolia Middle School (grades 6-8) and J. Ralph McIlvaine Early Childhood Center (kindergarten only). With no high school within city limits, families should plan for students to travel outside Magnolia for grades 9-12.

Magnolia Middle School is the clear standout, delivering exceptional academic results across the board. In the 2025-2026 school year, it outperformed both district and state averages in every single subject and grade level tested—all 10 categories. The school has also made a dramatic leap in its state ranking, jumping from the 43rd percentile (2 stars) in 2023-2024 to the 76th percentile (4 stars) in 2025-2026. Particularly impressive is 6th-grade math, where 55.56% of students are proficient—a remarkable 24.3 percentage points above the state average. Social studies is another strength, with 7th graders achieving a 68.8% proficiency rate. The school also showed year-over-year improvement in 8 of 10 test categories, including a 13.22-point gain in 8th-grade math. However, its student-teacher ratio of 23:1 is notably high, and chronic absenteeism affects 16% of students. Science remains the relative weak spot at 27.27% proficiency, though this still exceeds state averages.

J. Ralph McIlvaine Early Childhood Center serves as the foundational entry point for the district's youngest learners, with 454 kindergarten students and a favorable student-teacher ratio of 18.9:1. While no test scores are available for kindergarteners, the school's chronic absenteeism rate of 18.5% is a concern, exceeding both district (17.9%) and state (17.1%) averages. The exceptional performance of 6th graders at Magnolia Middle School suggests that the elementary schools feeding into it—likely outside city limits—are doing excellent preparatory work. Overall, Magnolia's schools represent a success story, with the middle school's consistent outperformance positioning it as a model within the district, though addressing absenteeism and bolstering science instruction remain key opportunities for improvement.