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DeKalb Middle School

Q: Is DeKalb Middle School a good school?

DeKalb Middle School ranks 188 th of 480 Indiana middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

188^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 480 Indiana Middle Schools

Better than 61% of Indiana middle schools

Summary

DeKalb Middle School is a public middle school located in Waterloo, Indiana, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 774 students. The school is part of the DeKalb County Ctl United School District, which is ranked 169 out of 380 districts in Indiana and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

DeKalb Middle School consistently outperforms the district and state averages in ILEARN test scores across all grades and subjects. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the school had 42.08% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 39.5% for the district and 40.5% for the state. However, the school has seen a steady increase in chronic absenteeism rates, from 14.4% in 2021-2022 to 17.8% in 2023-2024, which is an area of concern. Additionally, DeKalb Middle School has a relatively high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 42.73% to 47% over the past few years, suggesting a higher proportion of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

When compared to nearby middle schools, such as Northwood Middle School and Shawnee Middle School (both part of the Fort Wayne Community Schools district), DeKalb Middle School outperforms these schools in academic achievement. However, the school's statewide ranking has declined from 68th out of 473 Indiana middle schools in 2017-2018 to 188th out of 480 in 2024-2025, suggesting that it may be facing increasing competition from other high-performing middle schools in the state.

759

Students ?

16.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,631

Per pupil spending ?

45.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3338 Cr 427
Waterloo, IN 46793

(260) 920-1013

District: DeKalb County Ctl United School District

Students who attend DeKalb Middle School usually attend:

High:

DeKalb High School

Feeder schools for DeKalb Middle School:

Elementary:	Country Meadow Elementary School
	James R Watson Elementary School
	McKenney-Harrison Elementary School
	Waterloo Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

90.3%

Hispanic:

6.2%

Two or more races:

2.2%

See top rated Indiana middle schools

Compare DeKalb Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 70th percentile in 2015 → 61st in 2025

Strengths

✓Above the Indiana median (61st percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 9 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school37%

District avg41%

188^th of 480

Indiana public middle schools ?

Top 39%▼ down 9 pts since 2015

From top 30% (2015) to top 39% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

169^th of 380DeKalb County Ctl United School District 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	58.3	188 of 480	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	67.9	148 of 491	69.9%	★★★★☆
2023	71.5	124 of 489	74.6%	★★★★☆
2022	73.7	118 of 490	75.9%	★★★★☆
2021	72.5	119 of 483	75.4%	★★★★☆
2019	79.3	71 of 470	84.9%	★★★★☆
2018	80.8	68 of 473	85.6%	★★★★☆
2017	76.4	90 of 472	80.9%	★★★★☆
2016	77.1	86 of 494	82.6%	★★★★☆
2015	68.1	144 of 485	70.3%	★★★★☆
2014	61.7	204 of 470	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2013	55.8	230 of 444	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	63.6	164 of 447	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2011	66.0	149 of 451	67.0%	★★★☆☆
2010	72.8	100 of 428	76.6%	★★★★☆
2009	68.0	126 of 423	70.2%	★★★★☆
2008	56.9	181 of 392	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2007	56.1	184 of 382	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2006	58.2	169 of 375	54.9%	★★★☆☆
2005	49.2	225 of 370	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2004	43.8	143 of 222	35.6%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Indiana (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts42%

Science40%

Math32%

★

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Schools Near DeKalb Middle School

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 Social Studies (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 4th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 5th Grade	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 4th Grade	ILEARN Math 5th Grade	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math 7th Grade	ILEARN Math 8th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 4th Grade	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Social Studies 5th Grade	ILEARN Biology End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
DeKalb Middle School	Public	6-8	3338 Cr 427	Waterloo	46793	DeKalb County	DeKalb County Ctl United School District	No	No	No	No	(260) 920-1013	759	46	16.4	45.8%	685 (90.3%)	4 (0.5%)	47 (6.2%)	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	17 (2.2%)	58.3	188^th of 480 public middle schools	60.8%		67.9	148^th of 491 public middle schools	69.9%	40			40.3	39.5	46.5	42.1			36.2	26.6	34.2	32.1		40.0	40.0			$10,631	$54	$10,577
Garrett Middle School	Public	6-8	801 E Houston St	Garrett	46738	DeKalb County	Garrett-Keyser-Butler Com School Corp	No	No	No	No	(260) 357-5745	387	27	14.3	57.9%	355 (91.7%)	3 (0.8%)	15 (3.9%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (0.8%)	3 (0.8%)	7 (1.8%)	33.4	331^st of 480 public middle schools	31.0%		37.1	317^th of 491 public middle schools	35.4%	14			28.0	24.6	25.8	26.1			19.3	26.2	30.3	25.5		31.4	31.4			$10,989	$696	$10,293
East Noble Middle School	Public	6-8	415 Drake Rd	Kendallville	46755	Noble County	East Noble School Corporation	No	No	No	No	(260) 347-0100	767	57	13.4	38.1%	678 (88.4%)	12 (1.6%)	54 (7.0%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (2.5%)	45.2	267^th of 480 public middle schools	44.4%		42	287^th of 491 public middle schools	41.5%	20			32.3	24.4	22.8	26.4			44.1	37.3	27.2	36.0		38.3	38.3			$11,253	$597	$10,656
Leo Elementary School	Public	4-6	14811 Wayne St	Leo	46765	Allen County	East Allen County Schools	No	No	No	No	(260) 446-0170	653	32	20.4	23.4%	561 (85.9%)	12 (1.8%)	25 (3.8%)	8 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (7.2%)								(n/a)	56.3	56.2	62.2			58.3	62.0	48.9	60.8			57.2	50.7	53.9	52.3	43.3		$9,443	$774	$8,669
Maple Creek Middle School	Public	6-8	425 Union Chapel Rd	Fort Wayne	46845	Allen County	Northwest Allen County Schools	No	No	No	No	(260) 338-0802	1,024	50	20.4	16.1%	799 (78.0%)	49 (4.8%)	54 (5.3%)	64 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	58 (5.7%)	83.5	66^th of 480 public middle schools	86.3%		83.6	64^th of 491 public middle schools	87.0%	2			50.8	57.8	51.5	53.6			48.1	50.3	42.0	46.9		58.3	58.3			$8,064	$315	$7,749
Angola Middle School	Public	6-8	1350 E Maumee St	Angola	46703	Steuben County	MSD Steuben County	No	No	No	No	(260) 665-9581	543	42	12.9	56.2%	449 (82.7%)	1 (0.2%)	75 (13.8%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.6%)	67.2	142^nd of 480 public middle schools	70.4%		67.3	156^th of 491 public middle schools	68.2%	14			39.0	49.1	43.7	43.8			34.5	42.5	37.4	38.0		49.2	49.2		90.0	$11,229	$392	$10,837
Carroll Middle School	Public	6-8	4027 Hathaway Rd	Fort Wayne	46818	Allen County	Northwest Allen County Schools	No	No	No	No	(260) 637-5159	1,004	50	20.0	32.7%	764 (76.1%)	35 (3.5%)	57 (5.7%)	75 (7.5%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	70 (7.0%)	69.9	126^th of 480 public middle schools	73.8%		59.9	187^th of 491 public middle schools	61.9%	61			48.9	37.5	51.4	45.9			48.0	34.4	31.2	37.7		53.6	53.6			$8,676	$336	$8,340
Prairie Heights Middle School	Public	5-8	0395 S 1150 E	LaGrange	46761	LaGrange County	Prairie Heights Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(260) 351-3038	377	31	12.2	48.5%	348 (92.3%)	2 (0.5%)	17 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.1%)	48.4	249^th of 480 public middle schools	48.1%		52.7	225^th of 491 public middle schools	54.2%	24		37.8	38.5	31.6	45.5	38.5		28.6	28.7	13.2	23.9	24.3		45.0	45.0	49.0		$13,184	$395	$12,789
Shawnee Middle School	Public	6-8	1000 E Cook Rd	Fort Wayne	46825	Allen County	Fort Wayne Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(260) 467-6525	624	45	13.8	66.5%	235 (37.7%)	138 (22.1%)	146 (23.4%)	51 (8.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	51 (8.2%)	21.5	373^rd of 480 public middle schools	22.3%		21.3	379^th of 491 public middle schools	22.8%	6			29.1	19.1	23.0	23.9			20.3	14.6	13.8	16.3		21.6	21.6			$11,926	$1,132	$10,793
Jefferson Middle School	Public	6-8	5303 Wheelock Rd	Fort Wayne	46835	Allen County	Fort Wayne Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(260) 467-4825	658	43	15.1	56.2%	342 (52.0%)	101 (15.3%)	113 (17.2%)	29 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.5%)	70 (10.6%)	30.8	338^th of 480 public middle schools	29.6%		35.1	325^th of 491 public middle schools	33.8%	13			21.9	27.2	27.3	25.6			26.4	20.9	24.8	23.9		29.0	29.0			$11,154	$1,123	$10,031

Frequently Asked Questions about DeKalb Middle School

What district is DeKalb Middle School in?

DeKalb County Ctl United School District

Is DeKalb Middle School a good school?

DeKalb Middle School ranks 188^th of 480 Indiana middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of DeKalb Middle School?

Students at DeKalb Middle School are 90% White, 6% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races.

How many students attend DeKalb Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 759 students attended DeKalb Middle School.

What high school do graduates of DeKalb Middle School attend?

Students who attend DeKalb Middle School usually go on to attend DeKalb High School

Rate DeKalb Middle School!

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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.