Summary:
Pendleton, Indiana has one middle school in this data: Pendleton Heights Middle School, serving grades 7–8 with 730 students. It belongs to South Madison Com School Corp, a district that ranks 43 of 374 statewide (89th percentile, 4 stars). Because it is the only middle school in the city, there are no local peers to compare it with — the useful comparisons are against its own district, the state, and its own prior years.
The school has been a consistent high performer: it earned 4 stars and stayed around the 80th–83rd percentile for three straight years (97 of 486 in 2025–2026, 82 of 480 in 2024–2025, 97 of 491 in 2023–2024), placing it in roughly the top 20% of Indiana middle schools. In 2025–2026 it beat the state in all four reported grade and subject combinations: 7th grade ELA 42.28% vs 41.7%, 8th grade ELA 53.01% vs 44%, 7th grade math 45.23% vs 35.9%, and 8th grade math 45.18% vs 34.2%. Eighth grade ELA is a clear bright spot, 9.01 points above the state and 10.73 points above the school's own 7th grade ELA. Math is remarkably even between grades — 45.23% in 7th and 45.18% in 8th, a difference of just 0.05 points. At the all-grade level, though, the school's math (45.21%) trails the district (55.28%), suggesting other grades or schools lift the district's math results.
Other metrics are worth noting. Chronic absenteeism in 2024–2025 was just 1.4%, versus 7.7% in the district and 16.7% statewide — roughly 10 students out of 730 — even though 37.4% of students (about 273) qualify for free or reduced lunch. The student-teacher ratio is 21.1:1, implying about 35 teachers, and spending was $9,802 per student in 2023–2024. All-grade ELA shifted from slightly above the district in 2024–2025 (48.25% vs 47.06%) to below it in 2025–2026 (47.71% vs 51.3%). Overall, Pendleton Heights Middle School is a high-performing, 4-star school with strong grade-level math and 8th grade ELA results and exceptional attendance.
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