Estherville Lincoln Central Middle School

Estherville Lincoln Central Middle School is a public middle school serving grades 5-8 in Estherville, Iowa, with 314 students. The school faces several challenges, including consistently lower academic performance compared to nearby schools, high chronic absenteeism rates, and a relatively economically disadvantaged student population.

Academically, Estherville Lincoln Central Middle School has performed below the state average on ISASP tests across all grade levels and subjects. For example, in 2024-2025, the school's proficiency rates ranged from 54.4% to 85.5% in English Language Arts, 62.5% to 85.2% in Mathematics, and 54.4% to 80.3% in Science, compared to the state averages of 69.8% to 80.2%, 71.5% to 74.4%, and 64.2% to 70.5%, respectively. The school's chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 17.1% to 23.4% over the past few years, are also significantly higher than the state's average.

Compared to nearby middle schools, such as Okoboji Middle School and Spirit Lake Middle School, Estherville Lincoln Central Middle School generally performs worse on ISASP tests, with lower proficiency rates across all grade levels and subjects. However, it performs better than the smaller Graettinger-Terril Middle School. Additionally, the school's statewide ranking has declined over the years, from 172 out of 337 Iowa middle schools in 2021-2022 to 218 out of 344 in 2024-2025, indicating a relative decline in performance compared to other middle schools in the state.