Indian Trails Middle School

Indian Trails Middle School in Palm Coast, FL, serves 1,438 students in grades 6 through 8 and is part of the Flagler district, which ranks in the top 20% of Florida districts. This school stands out for its exceptional performance in advanced coursework, particularly in Algebra 1 and Geometry, where proficiency rates reached 91% and 90% respectively in the 2025-2026 school year. These scores significantly exceed both district and state averages, and even outperform Gamble Rogers Middle School in the highly-ranked St. Johns district, despite that school having higher per-student spending. Indian Trails also shows strong results in 8th Grade Science at 63% proficiency, well above the state average of 52% and notably higher than nearby Buddy Taylor Middle School at 56%.

Across core subjects, Indian Trails demonstrates consistent academic strength, with English Language Arts and Math proficiency rates in every grade level exceeding state averages. This broad success is a key differentiator from Buddy Taylor, where 8th grade ELA proficiency falls below the state average. Additionally, the school has seen a positive economic shift, with the percentage of students eligible for free or reduced lunch dropping dramatically from 50.13% in 2022-2023 to 33.38% in 2024-2025, suggesting improving socioeconomic conditions that may support academic growth.

However, parents should be aware of a notable concern: chronic absenteeism at Indian Trails was 27.2% in the 2023-2024 school year, which is significantly higher than Buddy Taylor's 18.8% rate. While this is better than district and state averages, it remains a red flag that could impact student learning. The school also has a student-to-teacher ratio of 19.6:1, slightly higher than Gamble Rogers but lower than Buddy Taylor. Despite a slight decline in state ranking percentile from a peak of 79th to 70th, Indian Trails remains a solid, above-average choice for families seeking strong academic programs, especially in math and science.