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Berg Middle School

Public Grades 5-8

292^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 344 Iowa Middle Schools

Better than 15% of Iowa middle schools

Summary

Berg Middle School is a public middle school in Newton, Iowa, serving 823 students in grades 5-8. The school is part of the Newton Community School District, which is ranked 255 out of 313 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Berg Middle School faces several challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates that have risen from 23.4% in 2022-2023 to 36.9% in 2023-2024, significantly higher than the state average and nearby schools like East Marshall Middle School (21.6%) and Grinnell Community Middle School (21.6%). The school's test scores in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are also consistently lower than state averages and surrounding schools, such as Lynnville-Sully Middle School.

Additionally, Berg Middle School has a higher percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 44.5% to 55.17% over the past few years, compared to nearby schools like East Marshall Middle School (35.29%) and Lynnville-Sully Middle School (26.56%). While the school spends more per student ($14,159) than some nearby schools, its performance, as measured by its statewide ranking and SchoolDigger star rating, has declined in recent years, dropping from a ranking of 172 out of 342 Iowa middle schools and a 3-star rating in 2018-2019 to a ranking of 292 out of 344 and a 1-star rating in 2024-2025.

790

Students ?

13.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,159

Per pupil spending ?

53.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1900 N 5th Ave E
Newton, IA 50208

(641) 792-7741

District: Newton Community School District

Students who attend Berg Middle School usually attend:

High:

Newton Senior High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

84.1%

Hispanic:

6.6%

Two or more races:

4.4%

See top rated Iowa middle schools

Compare Berg Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 50th percentile in 2019 → 15th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (62% vs 72% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (15th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (37% vs 22% Iowa)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school62%

District avg62%

Iowa avg72%

292^nd of 344

Iowa public middle schools ?

Bottom 15%▼ down 35 pts since 2019

From top 50% (2019) to bottom 15% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

255^th of 313Newton 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	23.3	292 of 344	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.3	289 of 337	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.4	263 of 334	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.6	272 of 337	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.6	267 of 324	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	52.5	172 of 342	49.7%	★★★☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts65%-10 vs state

Mathematics62%-11 vs state

Science57%-10 vs state

★

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Schools Near Berg Middle School

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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
Berg Middle School	Public	5-8	1900 N 5th Ave E	Newton	50208	Jasper County	Newton Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 792-7741	790	57	13.9	53.4%	664 (84.1%)	26 (3.3%)	52 (6.6%)	8 (1.0%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	35 (4.4%)	23.3	292^nd of 344 public middle schools	15.1%		22.3	289^th of 337 public middle schools	14.2%	3	56.5	63.6	67.9	71.5	52.9	56.0	69.5	68.1	56.2	57.5	$14,159	$320	$13,839
Lynnville-Sully Middle School	Public	6-8	12476 Hwy F62 E	Sully	50251	Jasper County	Lynnville-Sully Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 594-4445	121	7	16.1	22.3%	114 (94.2%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.5%)	75.3	53^rd of 344 public middle schools	84.6%		90	7^th of 337 public middle schools	97.9%	46		81.1	87.2	97.1		83.8	70.2	97.1		85.3	$10,764	$205	$10,559
PCM Middle School	Public	6-8	407 Plainsmen Rd	Prairie City	50228	Jasper County	PCM Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 994-8222	232	19	12.2	24.1%	211 (90.9%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.9%)	59.4	144^th of 344 public middle schools	58.1%		62.1	139^th of 337 public middle schools	58.8%	5		78.8	91.4	85.7		76.3	82.9	75.3		59.7	$13,929	$269	$13,660
Grinnell Community Middle School	Public	5-8	132 East Street S.	Grinnell	50112	Poweshiek County	Grinnell-Newburg Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 236-2700	420	32	13.1	34.5%	357 (85.0%)	10 (2.4%)	26 (6.2%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.7%)	51.5	194^th of 344 public middle schools	43.6%		64.6	119^th of 337 public middle schools	64.7%	75	65.7	70.9	78.3	78.8	67.6	76.7	80.4	82.8	65.7	61.6	$12,622	$314	$12,308
East Marshall Middle School	Public	6-8	225 S Elm	Gilman	50106	Marshall County	East Marshall Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 498-7483	157	11	14.0	36.9%	128 (81.5%)	2 (1.3%)	20 (12.7%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.2%)	46.9	216^th of 344 public middle schools	37.2%		52.6	187^th of 337 public middle schools	44.5%	29		77.8	83.3	84.0		66.7	58.3	84.0		60.0	$11,474	$89	$11,385

Frequently Asked Questions about Berg Middle School

What district is Berg Middle School in?

Newton Community School District

How many students attend Berg Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 790 students attended Berg Middle School.

What is the racial makeup of Berg Middle School?

Students at Berg Middle School are 84% White, 7% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 3% African American, 1% Asian.

Is Berg Middle School a good school?

Berg Middle School ranks in the bottom 15.1% of Iowa middle schools.

What high school do graduates of Berg Middle School attend?

Students who attend Berg Middle School usually go on to attend Newton Senior High School

Rate Berg Middle School!

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IAIowa Middle School Rankings

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Schools in Newton, IA

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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.