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Mildred Merkley Elementary School

Q: Is Mildred Merkley Elementary School a good school?

Mildred Merkley Elementary School ranks 413 th of 1005 Indiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

413^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,005 Indiana Elementary Schools

Better than 59% of Indiana elementary schools

Summary

Mildred Merkley Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Highland, Indiana, serving 281 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the School Town of Highland district, which is ranked 116 out of 380 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating.

Mildred Merkley Elementary has seen a steady increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 11.8% in 2020-2021 to 17.8% in 2023-2024, which is higher than the district average of 14.7%. Academically, the school's English Language Arts (ELA) proficiency rates have remained around 40-44%, slightly below the district average of 43-45%, while its math proficiency rates have been higher, ranging from 49-54% compared to 45-47% for the district. However, Mildred Merkley's science and social studies proficiency rates have been lower than the district's.

Compared to nearby schools, Mildred Merkley's performance is generally on par with other schools in the School Town of Highland district, such as Allen J. Warren Elementary and Southridge Elementary. However, it outperforms schools in neighboring districts, such as Longfellow New Technical Elementary and Morton Elementary. Addressing the rising chronic absenteeism and supporting students from lower-income households, who now make up 46.62% of the student population, could be key focus areas for Mildred Merkley to improve its overall academic outcomes.

290

Students ?

21.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,683

Per pupil spending ?

47.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

9340 Fifth St
Highland, IN 46322

(219) 922-5640

District: School Town of Highland

Students who attend Mildred Merkley Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Highland Middle School
High:	Highland High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

44.5%

White:

38.6%

African American:

9.0%

See top rated Indiana elementary schools

Compare Mildred Merkley Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 37th percentile in 2019 → 59th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Indiana average (45% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 59th (2025) from a 37th-percentile low (2019)

✓Above the Indiana median (59th percentile)

Worth a look

!Social Studies scores 12 pts below the Indiana average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school45%

District avg46%

Indiana avg38%

413^th of 1,005

Indiana public elementary schools ?

Top 41%▼ down 6 pts since 2015

From top 35% (2015) to top 41% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 4Elementary Schools in the School Town of Highland

116^th of 380School Town of Highland 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	59.3	413 of 1005	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	64.4	361 of 1011	64.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.1	457 of 1016	55.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.5	503 of 1020	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	67.2	328 of 1016	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	43.3	645 of 1031	37.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	56.6	502 of 1027	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2017	53.3	557 of 1033	46.1%	★★☆☆☆
2016	59.7	483 of 1046	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	65.7	367 of 1040	64.7%	★★★☆☆
2014	60.5	468 of 1036	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2013	52.9	586 of 1035	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2012	56.4	516 of 1015	49.2%	★★☆☆☆
2011	65.6	375 of 1025	63.4%	★★★☆☆
2010	70.7	289 of 1009	71.4%	★★★★☆
2009	76.3	199 of 1003	80.2%	★★★★☆
2008	80.8	125 of 996	87.4%	★★★★☆
2007	72.4	236 of 985	76.0%	★★★★☆
2006	79.7	140 of 961	85.4%	★★★★☆
2005	67.9	283 of 959	70.5%	★★★★☆
2004	70.3	78 of 326	76.1%	★★★★☆

By subject vs Indiana (2024-2025) ?

Math51%

Science48%

English Language Arts44%

Social Studies27%-12 vs state

2.5

2 ratings · 1 written review

5★0

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a citizen
Friday, January 17, 2014

As a 35 yaer resident of Highland who has had three children attend Elementry, Middle and High School in Highland, I am well aware of the wonderful and dedicated staff at Merkley. I tis a very good school and provides a quality educaiton. It encourages parental involvement and offers a wide range of programs and activities to enhance the overall educational experiecne. I would recomend the school. Close Quote

Schools Near Mildred Merkley Elementary 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)	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 3rd Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 4th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 5th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 6th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts All Grades	ILEARN Math 3rd Grade	ILEARN Math 4th Grade	ILEARN Math 5th Grade	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 4th Grade	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Social Studies 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Mildred Merkley Elementary School	Public	K-5	9340 Fifth St	Highland	46322	Lake County	School Town of Highland	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 922-5640	290	14	21.4	47.9%	112 (38.6%)	26 (9.0%)	129 (44.5%)	10 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.5%)	59.3	413^th of 1005 public elementary schools	58.9%		64.4	361^st of 1011 public elementary schools	64.3%	52	43.8	52.0	35.6		44.1	58.3	62.0	31.1		51.1	48.0		48.0	26.7	$10,683	$529	$10,154
Allen J Warren Elementary School	Public	K-5	2901 100th St	Highland	46322	Lake County	School Town of Highland	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 922-5660	308	15	21.2	48.7%	113 (36.7%)	60 (19.5%)	108 (35.1%)	14 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.2%)	59.2	417^th of 1005 public elementary schools	58.5%		72.9	263^rd of 1011 public elementary schools	74.0%	154	36.5	54.6	34.6		42.1	44.2	61.8	44.2		50.3	52.7		52.7	30.8	$10,750	$531	$10,219
Southridge Elementary School	Public	K-5	9221 Johnston St	Highland	46322	Lake County	School Town of Highland	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 922-5650	439	20	22.5	42.4%	233 (53.1%)	36 (8.2%)	150 (34.2%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.6%)	64.6	342^nd of 1005 public elementary schools	66.0%		54.8	470^th of 1011 public elementary schools	53.5%	128	42.6	50.0	35.2		42.7	60.7	59.7	42.3		53.9	52.8		52.8	38.6	$10,047	$478	$9,570
Beiriger Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	601 N Lillian St	Griffith	46319	Lake County	Griffith Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 924-4030	426	36	12.0	59.9%	177 (41.5%)	76 (17.8%)	153 (35.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.7%)	58.9	419^th of 1005 public elementary schools	58.3%		54.8	472^nd of 1011 public elementary schools	53.3%	53	38.2	38.5	34.2		37.2	55.9	55.1	38.5		50.6	48.7		48.7	49.6	$13,319	$1,460	$11,859
Judith Morton Johnston Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	8220 Fifth St	Highland	46322	Lake County	School Town of Highland	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 923-2428	383	16	24.7	46.2%	183 (47.8%)	31 (8.1%)	153 (39.9%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (3.9%)	51.3	494^th of 1005 public elementary schools	50.8%		64.1	366^th of 1011 public elementary schools	63.8%	128	31.4	42.0	32.4		34.5	54.3	45.1	41.9		47.2	48.0		48.0	35.1	$9,870	$557	$9,312
Ernest R Elliott Elementary School	Public	K-5	8718 White Oak Ave	Munster	46321	Lake County	School Town of Munster	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 838-5250	463	31	14.7	24.8%	261 (56.4%)	15 (3.2%)	146 (31.5%)	12 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.3%)	85.9	126^th of 1005 public elementary schools	87.5%		86.5	109^th of 1011 public elementary schools	89.2%	17	65.2	48.8	70.9		61.6	80.4	64.3	62.0		69.4	48.8		48.8	65.8	$11,166	$502	$10,664
Frank H Hammond Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1301 Fran-Lin Pky	Munster	46321	Lake County	School Town of Munster	No	No	No	No	(219) 838-2060	620	41	15.0	16.6%	325 (52.4%)	46 (7.4%)	170 (27.4%)	43 (6.9%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (5.5%)	95.3	23^rd of 1005 public elementary schools	97.7%		95.7	21^st of 1011 public elementary schools	97.9%	2	72.6	63.1	68.4		68.0	84.3	81.6	78.1		81.2	68.9		68.9	65.8	$10,290	$304	$9,986
Elsie Wadsworth Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-2	600 N Jay St	Griffith	46319	Lake County	Griffith Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 923-4488	477	39	12.2	55.1%	167 (35.0%)	111 (23.3%)	168 (35.2%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (5.7%)								(n/a)															$15,582	$1,461	$14,121
Joseph Hess Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	3640 Orchard Dr	Hammond	46323	Lake County	School City of Hammond	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 989-7355	611	36	16.8	50.2%	66 (10.8%)	249 (40.8%)	264 (43.2%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (4.6%)	9.8	922^nd of 1005 public elementary schools	8.3%		15.4	864^th of 1011 public elementary schools	14.5%	58	8.4	10.7	18.0	10.5	11.7	15.6	22.6	15.4	5.3	15.0	17.9	10.5	14.4	20.5	$11,020	$2,131	$8,889
Longfellow New Technical Elementary School	Public	K-4	45th/Calhoun Sts	Gary	46408	Lake County	Lake Ridge New Technical Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 923-7004	483	25	19.3	97.1%	153 (31.7%)	154 (31.9%)	146 (30.2%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (5.8%)	5.1	989^th of 1005 public elementary schools	1.6%		6.4	982^nd of 1011 public elementary schools	2.9%	7	9.5	9.3			9.4	12.1	12.8			12.4	10.5		10.5		$14,198	$3,558	$10,640

Frequently Asked Questions about Mildred Merkley Elementary School

What district is Mildred Merkley Elementary School in?

School Town of Highland

How many students attend Mildred Merkley Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 290 students attended Mildred Merkley Elementary School.

Is Mildred Merkley Elementary School a good school?

Mildred Merkley Elementary School ranks 413^th of 1005 Indiana elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Mildred Merkley Elementary School?

Students at Mildred Merkley Elementary School are 44% Hispanic, 39% White, 9% African American, 4% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Mildred Merkley Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Mildred Merkley Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Highland Middle School
High : Highland High School

Rate Mildred Merkley Elementary 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.