Summary:
The Buhl Joint District in Idaho contains one middle school, Buhl Middle School, which serves grades 6 through 8 with 298 students in the Buhl area. The school serves a majority low-income population, with 54.7% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and maintains a student-teacher ratio of 18.1. Per-student spending is $8,358, though this figure comes from 2018–2019. In the most recent state ranking, the school placed at the 15th percentile with 1 star, a sharp drop from the prior year when it reached the 36th percentile with 2 stars.
On the 2025–2026 ISAT exams, Buhl Middle School posted 29.4% proficiency in Math, 43.8% in English Language Arts, and 40.6% in Science. All of these trail state averages, with Math 13.7 points below and ELA 10.2 points below the state. Grade-level results show steady improvement as students advance: Math rises from 26.2% in 6th grade to 32.6% in 8th grade, while ELA climbs from 35.7% to 53.7%. The 8th grade ELA result is especially encouraging, coming within about one point of the state average. Year-over-year, however, the school saw significant setbacks, with Math proficiency falling 9.5 points and ELA falling 6.2 points from the prior year.
Chronic absenteeism is an area of concern, affecting 18.2% of students, compared to 17.7% districtwide and 13.8% statewide. The combination of rising absenteeism and falling test scores likely explains the school's drop to the bottom 15% of Idaho middle schools. While the district's all-grade ELA average is 39.3%, Buhl Middle School outperforms it at 43.8%, making the middle school a relative strength for the district in reading. Math remains the most pressing challenge, as the school's 29.4% proficiency trails both the district (31.2%) and falls far below the state (43.1%). For parents, the key picture is a school with genuine strengths in 8th grade literacy and clear grade-level growth, but one where math achievement, chronic absenteeism, and recent testing declines demand attention.
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