Summary:
Zip code 83861 contains just one middle school, St Maries Middle School, serving grades 6–8 with 189 students in the St Maries Joint District. Because it is the only middle school in the area, this analysis focuses on how the school compares to its district and state averages.
The most urgent trend is a steep decline in performance. St Maries Middle School fell from the 53rd percentile statewide (3 stars) in 2023–2024 to the 23rd percentile (1 star) in 2025–2026. Math proficiency dropped from 36.1% to 21.3% while the state remained at 43.1%, and ELA fell from 54.8% to 42.0%, pushing the school from above the state average in ELA to 12 points below it. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 32.2% is more than double the state average of 13.8% and six times the district rate of 5.1%, which likely contributes to the academic slide.
There are bright spots. In 2024–2025, the school posted 50.8% science proficiency, above the district (41.0%) and state (42.6%), and 7th-grade ELA in 2025–2026 reached 58.3%, above the state's 56.8%. About half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student-teacher ratio is 17.1. To reverse the downward trajectory, the school will need to address attendance and stabilize math performance.
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