Middle Schools in Cassia County Joint District

Cassia County Joint District in Idaho is home to two middle schools — Burley Junior High School (grades 7–8, 560 students) and Declo Junior High School (grades 6–8, 249 students) — and while they share the same district leadership, their outcomes are nearly opposite. The district itself ranks 64th out of 101 Idaho districts (2 stars), but that average masks a wide gap between its two middle schools: Declo ranks 78th out of 174 Idaho middle schools with a 3-star rating, while Burley ranks 149th with a 1-star rating.

Declo Junior High School is the clear standout. Its math proficiency (51.5%) beats Burley's (35.0%) by 16.5 percentage points and also tops the state average of 43.1%. In English Language Arts, Declo posts 53.3%, essentially at the state average and well above Burley's 42.9%. Declo also has dramatically better attendance, with only 7.4% of students chronically absent compared to Burley's 16.0%. Notably, the performance gap is not uniform across grade levels: in 7th grade, Burley actually edges Declo in ELA (47.2% vs. 46.8%), and the schools are close in math. The divide widens sharply in 8th grade, where Declo's math proficiency (50.7%) exceeds Burley's (32.9%) by nearly 18 points. Declo's 6th-grade scores are exceptional as well, with 63.6% math and 67.5% ELA proficiency.

Burley Junior High School faces more significant challenges. More than half of its students (50.71%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and its chronic absenteeism rate of 16.0% exceeds both the district average of 12.5% and the state average of 13.8%. Burley scores below district and state averages in every subject and grade level, and its state percentile has slipped from 21st to 14th over three consecutive years. Both schools spend nearly the same per student — $7,747 at Burley versus $7,444 at Declo — so funding alone does not explain the differences. For parents, Declo offers consistently stronger academics, better attendance, and stable 3-star rankings, while Burley's declining rank, high absenteeism, and weak 8th-grade math performance are important concerns to consider when evaluating schools in this area.