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Career Academy Middle School

Public, Charter Grades 6-8

391^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 480 Indiana Middle Schools

Better than 19% of Indiana middle schools

Summary

Career Academy Middle School is a public charter school located in South Bend, Indiana, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 400 students. The school is part of the Career Academy Middle School District, which is ranked 309 out of 380 districts in Indiana and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

The analysis of Career Academy Middle School reveals several areas of concern. The school consistently performs below the state average in ILEARN assessments for English Language Arts, Math, and Science across all grade levels. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, only 23.43% of students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to the state averages of 40.5% for 6th grade, 37.9% for 7th grade, and 42.7% for 8th grade. Similarly, in Math, only 11.11% of students were proficient or better, compared to the state averages of 39.7% for 6th grade, 35.9% for 7th grade, and 34.5% for 8th grade. Additionally, Career Academy Middle School has significantly higher chronic absenteeism rates, with a rate of 39.9% in the 2023-2024 school year, much higher than the state average.

When comparing Career Academy Middle School to the nearby schools, such as Virgil I Grissom Middle School and Schmucker Middle School, both part of the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp district, it becomes evident that Career Academy Middle School is performing significantly worse academically. These nearby schools have much higher proficiency rates in ELA, Math, and Science, with over 40% of students proficient or better in most subjects. The high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch at Career Academy Middle School, 62.5% in the 2023-2024 school year, suggests that the school serves a more economically disadvantaged population compared to the nearby schools, which may be a contributing factor to the school's lower academic performance.

414

Students ?

8.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,707

Per pupil spending ?

60.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3801 Cresent Circle - Suite B
South Bend, IN 46628

(574) 299-9800

District: Career Academy Middle School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

40.8%

White:

34.1%

Hispanic:

15.0%

See top rated Indiana middle schools

Compare Career Academy Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 30th percentile in 2018 → 19th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 8 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Indiana average (19% vs 46% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (19th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 11 percentile points since 2018

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school19%

District avg19%

Indiana avg46%

391^st of 480

Indiana public middle schools ?

Bottom 19%▼ down 12 pts since 2018

From bottom 30% (2018) to bottom 19% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

309^th of 380Career Academy Middle School among Indiana districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2025	18.3	391 of 480	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.2	424 of 491	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.4	410 of 489	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.1	412 of 490	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.2	414 of 483	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.8	362 of 470	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.7	329 of 473	30.4%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Indiana (2024-2025) ?

Biology89%+43 vs state

English Language Arts23%

Science22%

Math11%

★

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Schools Near Career Academy Middle School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ILEARN English Language Arts (2025)				ILEARN Math (2025)				ILEARN Science (2025)		ILEARN Biology (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ILEARN English Language Arts 6th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 7th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 8th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts All Grades	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math 7th Grade	ILEARN Math 8th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Biology End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Career Academy Middle School	Public, Charter	6-8	3801 Cresent Circle - Suite B	South Bend	46628	St. Joseph County	Career Academy Middle School	Yes	No	No	No	(574) 299-9800	414	50	8.2	60.1%	141 (34.1%)	169 (40.8%)	62 (15.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.5%)	38 (9.2%)	18.3	391^st of 480 public middle schools	18.5%		13.2	424^th of 491 public middle schools	13.6%	33	24.1	23.1	23.1	23.4	12.8	16.4	4.8	11.1	21.8	21.8	88.9	$9,707	$1,525	$8,181
LaSalle Academy	Public	6-8	2701 W Elwood	South Bend	46628	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-4700	461	34	13.7	41.6%	190 (41.2%)	114 (24.7%)	109 (23.6%)	7 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	40 (8.7%)	94.9	16^th of 480 public middle schools	96.7%		94.2	21^st of 491 public middle schools	95.7%	5	59.9	79.1	84.7	73.4	62.3	49.6	64.2	59.1	70.7	70.7		$15,495	$2,445	$13,050
Navarre Middle School	Public	6-8	4702 W Ford St	South Bend	46619	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	Yes	(574) 393-4600	378	40	9.3	79.4%	29 (7.7%)	139 (36.8%)	183 (48.4%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.3%)	23 (6.1%)	4.3	477^th of 480 public middle schools	0.6%		5.8	483^rd of 491 public middle schools	1.6%	6	5.7	6.1	5.6	5.8	2.9	0.9	2.4	2.0	2.9	2.9		$20,817	$4,367	$16,450
Jefferson Traditional School	Public	6-8	528 S Eddy St	South Bend	46617	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-4100	591	37	15.9	59.4%	156 (26.4%)	248 (42.0%)	104 (17.6%)	4 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	78 (13.2%)	13.3	416^th of 480 public middle schools	13.3%		18.8	395^th of 491 public middle schools	19.6%	21	9.3	14.9	26.0	17.3	7.4	12.1	13.6	11.3	10.6	10.6		$13,480	$2,638	$10,843
John J Young Middle School	Public	7-8	1801 N Main St	Mishawaka	46545	St. Joseph County	School City of Mishawaka	No	No	No	No	(574) 254-3600	709	50	14.1	29.2%	441 (62.2%)	112 (15.8%)	75 (10.6%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	79 (11.1%)	30	341^st of 480 public middle schools	29.0%		37.8	313^th of 491 public middle schools	36.3%	28		25.4	28.7	27.0		23.7	17.0	20.4				$13,017	$617	$12,400
Jackson Middle School	Public	6-8	5001 S Miami Rd	South Bend	46614	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-4500	537	45	12.0	72.3%	81 (15.1%)	238 (44.3%)	153 (28.5%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	62 (11.5%)	5.2	473^rd of 480 public middle schools	1.5%		8.3	465^th of 491 public middle schools	5.3%	8	3.8	6.4	10.7	7.1	1.9	3.6	5.9	3.8	4.4	4.4		$16,978	$4,182	$12,796
Schmucker Middle School	Public	6-8	56045 Bittersweet Rd	Mishawaka	46545	St. Joseph County	Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 259-5661	1,041	56	18.7	40.1%	702 (67.4%)	99 (9.5%)	114 (11.0%)	46 (4.4%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	75 (7.2%)	86.2	52^nd of 480 public middle schools	89.2%		85.4	56^th of 491 public middle schools	88.6%	4	51.4	53.1	57.8	54.2	43.6	53.7	60.7	52.9	57.3	57.3		$9,959	$493	$9,466
New Prairie Middle School	Public	6-8	5325 N Cougar Rd	New Carlisle	46552	LaPorte County	New Prairie United School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 654-3070	667	35	18.8	40.9%	553 (82.9%)	5 (0.7%)	75 (11.2%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (4.6%)	81.5	76^th of 480 public middle schools	84.2%		81.7	70^th of 491 public middle schools	85.7%	6	48.0	46.8	54.9	50.1	56.6	49.8	42.1	49.3	51.1	51.1		$9,982	$322	$9,660
Virgil I Grissom Middle School	Public	6-8	13881 Kern Rd	Mishawaka	46544	St. Joseph County	Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 633-4061	662	43	15.5	50.6%	450 (68.0%)	58 (8.8%)	81 (12.2%)	8 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	63 (9.5%)	71.3	120^th of 480 public middle schools	75.0%		66.7	160^th of 491 public middle schools	67.4%	40	48.0	41.7	54.4	48.0	39.6	39.0	43.8	40.8	41.1	41.1		$11,165	$827	$10,338
Discovery Middle School	Public	6-8	10050 Brummitt Rd	Granger	46530	St. Joseph County	Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 674-6010	941	46	20.6	19.4%	678 (72.1%)	29 (3.1%)	64 (6.8%)	106 (11.3%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	62 (6.6%)	98.2	3^rd of 480 public middle schools	99.4%		98.8	2^nd of 491 public middle schools	99.6%	1	68.7	68.5	78.2	71.7	68.3	72.6	80.6	73.7	70.5	70.5		$10,506	$746	$9,760

Frequently Asked Questions about Career Academy Middle School

What is the racial makeup of Career Academy Middle School?

Students at Career Academy Middle School are 41% African American, 34% White, 15% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races.

Is Career Academy Middle School a good school?

Career Academy Middle School ranks in the bottom 18.5% of Indiana middle schools.

How many students attend Career Academy Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 414 students attended Career Academy Middle School.

What district is Career Academy Middle School in?

Career Academy Middle School

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Latest Indiana data All new data »

2024–25 graduation ratesJan 5, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataSep 4, 2025

2022–23 through 2023–24 school spending dataJul 16, 2025

2024–25 ILEARN & SAT test scoresJul 16, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Indiana Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.