Summary:
Zip code 30252 in McDonough, Georgia, is served by two middle schools—Ola Middle School and Union Grove Middle—both part of the Henry County district and both serving grades 6-8 with nearly identical enrollments of just over 1,000 students each.
For families comparing the two, Union Grove Middle is the stronger performer overall. It holds a 4-star rating and ranks in the 74th percentile statewide, while Ola Middle School carries a 3-star rating at the 64th percentile. Union Grove posts higher proficiency rates in nearly every subject and grade, with the gap most visible in 8th grade math (58.1% vs. 47.7%) and social studies (39.3% vs. 31.9%). Union Grove also has dramatically lower chronic absenteeism at 6.8% compared to Ola's 12.5%, and it achieves these results while spending about $735 less per student. Both schools far exceed their district averages—often doubling or nearly tripling them—and both outperform state averages in math and advanced coursework. In Algebra I end-of-course exams, for instance, Ola posts 86.5% proficiency and Union Grove 93.4%, compared to a 48.1% state average.
Both schools show exceptional strength in advanced classes, with physical science proficiency around 80% at Ola and 75.5% at Union Grove, well above state and district levels. The main area of concern is social studies, where Ola (31.9%) falls below the state average of 40.2%, and both schools declined in this subject year-over-year. Ola also trails in 6th and 7th grade ELA based on the most recent available data, while Union Grove exceeds state averages in all three middle grades. For parents, Union Grove Middle offers the more consistently high-performing environment, but Ola Middle School remains a solid choice with particular strengths in advanced math and a lower student-teacher ratio that may benefit students needing more individual attention.
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