Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Forest City Middle School

Q: Is Forest City Middle School a good school?

Forest City Middle School ranks 45 th of 344 Iowa middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 5-8

45^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 344 Iowa Middle Schools

Better than 87% of Iowa middle schools

Summary

Forest City Middle School is a public middle school serving grades 5-8 in the Forest City Community School District in Forest City, Iowa. With 319 students and a student-teacher ratio of 12.9, the school consistently outperforms the state average in academic performance.

Forest City Middle School's students excel on the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) tests, with 92.1% of 8th graders proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to the state average of 80.2%. In Mathematics, 85.7% of 8th graders are proficient or better, surpassing the state average of 74.4%. While the school has seen an increase in chronic absenteeism, reaching 21.6% in 2023-2024, it remains lower than the state's 23.4% rate in the previous year.

Compared to nearby middle schools like Clear Lake Middle School, North Iowa Middle School, and Lake Mills Middle School, Forest City Middle School stands out with its higher spending per student of $13,622 in 2018-2019. This investment may contribute to the school's strong academic performance, though it also serves a higher percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 37.74% to 41.38% over the past few years.

330

Students ?

13.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,622

Per pupil spending ?

41.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

216 W School St
Forest City, IA 50436

(641) 585-4772

District: Forest City Community School District

Students who attend Forest City Middle School usually attend:

High:

Forest City High School

Feeder schools for Forest City Middle School:

Elementary:

Forest City Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

84.2%

Hispanic:

6.7%

Two or more races:

6.7%

See top rated Iowa middle schools

Compare Forest City Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 54th percentile in 2015 → 87th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Iowa average (81% vs 72% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 13% of Iowa middle schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 33 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school81%

District avg81%

Iowa avg72%

45^th of 344

Iowa public middle schools ?

Top 13%▲ up 33 pts since 2015

From top 46% (2015) to top 13% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

38^th of 313Forest City Community School District among Iowa districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Iowa percentile	Rating
2025	76.3	45 of 344	86.9%	★★★★☆
2024	54.8	172 of 337	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	72.1	73 of 334	78.1%	★★★★☆
2022	80.0	40 of 337	88.1%	★★★★☆
2021	80.9	36 of 324	88.9%	★★★★☆
2019	82.0	29 of 342	91.5%	★★★★★
2018	72.7	67 of 318	78.9%	★★★★☆
2017	59.5	133 of 327	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2016	65.9	104 of 343	69.7%	★★★★☆
2015	57.9	162 of 349	53.6%	★★★☆☆
2014	75.6	53 of 337	84.3%	★★★★☆
2013	59.1	147 of 350	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	73.1	59 of 349	83.1%	★★★★☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts84%+9 vs state

Mathematics80%+8 vs state

Science79%+11 vs state

★

No ratings yet

Be the first to rate Forest City Middle School and help other families decide.

Rate Forest City Middle School

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

Reviews

No written reviews yet. If you know this school, be the first to share what stands out.

Schools Near Forest City Middle School

Load more schools when map is moved

Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ISASP English Language Arts (2025)				ISASP Mathematics (2025)				ISASP Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISASP English Language Arts 5th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 6th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 7th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 8th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 6th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 7th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 8th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	ISASP Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Forest City Middle School	Public	5-8	216 W School St	Forest City	50436	Winnebago County	Forest City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 585-4772	330	25	13.2	41.5%	278 (84.2%)	4 (1.2%)	22 (6.7%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (6.7%)	76.3	45^th of 344 public middle schools	86.9%		54.8	172^nd of 337 public middle schools	49.0%	127	74.7	82.7	86.6	92.1	71.1	80.2	84.1	85.7	77.1	80.3	$13,622	$262	$13,360
Lake Mills Middle School	Public	6-8	102 S 4th Ave E	Lake Mills	50450	Winnebago County	Lake Mills Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 592-0894	146	6	25.5	39.0%	117 (80.1%)	3 (2.1%)	20 (13.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.1%)	76.3	46^th of 344 public middle schools	86.6%		65.5	114^th of 337 public middle schools	66.2%	68		88.9	85.4	92.2		75.6	87.8	80.4		84.3	$9,773	$220	$9,553
Garner-Hayfield-Ventura Middle School	Public	5-8	620 W. 11th St.	Garner	50438	Hancock County	Garner-Hayfield-Ventura Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 923-2831	255	17	15.3	28.2%	224 (87.8%)	1 (0.4%)	17 (6.7%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.6%)	7 (2.7%)	62.4	126^th of 344 public middle schools	63.4%					(n/a)	87.7	90.9	67.8	84.5	87.7	86.4	64.4	77.6	83.1	89.7	$13,125	$482	$12,643
Clear Lake Middle School	Public	6-8	1601 3rd Ave North	Clear Lake	50428	Cerro Gordo County	Clear Lake Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 357-6114	308	22	13.8	32.1%	261 (84.7%)	8 (2.6%)	22 (7.1%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	14 (4.5%)	58.6	152^nd of 344 public middle schools	55.8%		66.6	109^th of 337 public middle schools	67.7%	43		83.5	79.8	81.2		79.1	78.7	70.1		76.1	$13,904	$318	$13,586
North Iowa Middle School	Public	6-8	111 3rd Ave NW	Buffalo Center	50424	Winnebago County	North Iowa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 562-2525	115	8	14.0	38.3%	101 (87.8%)	1 (0.9%)	13 (11.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	68.8	86^th of 344 public middle schools	75.0%		49.1	203^rd of 337 public middle schools	39.8%	117		70.6	82.9	92.7		79.4	71.4	87.8		87.8	$13,756	$463	$13,293

Frequently Asked Questions about Forest City Middle School

What district is Forest City Middle School in?

Forest City Community School District

What is the racial makeup of Forest City Middle School?

Students at Forest City Middle School are 84% White, 7% Hispanic, 7% Two or more races, 1% African American, 1% Asian.

How many students attend Forest City Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 330 students attended Forest City Middle School.

Is Forest City Middle School a good school?

Forest City Middle School ranks 45^th of 344 Iowa middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What high school do graduates of Forest City Middle School attend?

Students who attend Forest City Middle School usually go on to attend Forest City High School

Rate Forest City Middle School!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

IAIowa Middle School Rankings

IAIowa District Rankings

Schools in Forest City, IA

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Forest City Middle School!

Latest Iowa data All new data »

2024–25 graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 ISASP test scoresAug 20, 2025

2023–24 graduation ratesApr 1, 2025

2017–18 through 2023–24 attendance dataNov 15, 2024

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Iowa Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.