Summary:
Melba Joint District is a small rural district in Idaho that contains just one high school, Melba High School, serving grades 7 through 12 with an enrollment of 394 students.
For parents, the most encouraging news is attendance: only 6.7% of students are chronically absent, well below the state average of 13.8%, and the graduation rate of 82.5% matches the state exactly. However, academics present a mixed picture. The school's strongest subject is English Language Arts, where 49.5% of students are proficient overall, close to the state rate of 54%. Math proficiency is lower at 31%, and science is a major concern at just 20.3% – roughly half the state average of 42.7%. The 8th grade stands out as a particularly difficult year: science proficiency is only 9.7% versus the state’s 42.9%, and math (25.4%) and ELA (35.5%) also trail state averages by double digits. By comparison, 7th grade ELA nearly matches the state (55.6% vs. 56.8%), and end-of-course math is within 2 points of the state average.
Melba High School’s overall ranking has been volatile, moving from the 62nd percentile (3 stars) in 2023-2024, down to the 11th percentile (1 star) in 2024-2025, and back up to the 30th percentile (2 stars) in 2025-2026. The district as a whole, Melba Joint District, ranks 70th out of 101 Idaho districts. About 35% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, and per-student spending is $8,218. The district’s overall test scores are slightly higher than the high school’s, likely reflecting stronger elementary and middle school performance. If your child is entering 8th grade, extra support in science and math may be especially valuable, while the school’s strong attendance culture is a clear positive.
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