Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 46201

ZIP code 46201, on Indianapolis's near east side, has two middle schools, both part of Indianapolis Public Schools and both serving grades 6–8: Broad Ripple Middle School - an IB World School (623 students) and H. L. Harshman Middle School (509 students), totaling 1,132 students. Both share the same district, the same grade span, and the same district-level rating — IPS sits at the 16th percentile with 1 star — which makes them unusually easy to compare: they are measured against the identical benchmark in every subject.

H. L. Harshman Middle School is the clear standout and a genuine turnaround story. It moved from 397 of 491 (19th percentile, 1 star) in 2023-24 to 63 of 480 (87th percentile, 4 stars) in 2024-25, and held 63 of 486 (87th percentile, 4 stars) in 2025-26 — two straight years in the top 13% of Indiana middle schools, which points to sustained improvement rather than a one-year spike. Its proficiency far exceeds the district: ELA 60.15% vs 21.09%, Math 48.81% vs 21.19%, and Science 46.5% vs 21.32%, and it beats state averages at every grade level tested, peaking at 68.99% in 8th grade ELA against a state figure of 44%. Its chronic absenteeism rate of 8.4% is roughly half the state rate (16.7%) and about a quarter of the district rate (32.2%).

Broad Ripple Middle School - an IB World School ranked 389 of 486 (20th percentile, 1 star) and performs essentially at the district line: ELA 20.51% vs 21.09%, Math 14.71% vs 21.19%, and Science 28.68% vs 21.32%. Against the state, every grade-level result is below average, with gaps from about 12.5 points to roughly 27 points. Its Biology End-of-Course figure of 79.31% is the highest test number in this data set, but it sits nearly 65 points above the same school's Math average and likely reflects a smaller or differently composed cohort rather than broad instructional strength; treat it as suggestive, not representative. Notably, Broad Ripple has smaller classes (11.8 ratio vs 13.9) and a higher free/reduced-lunch share (57.95% vs 46.56%), yet Harshman's results are far stronger — class size and poverty alone don't determine outcomes. Parents should weigh each school's own rating, not just the district's.