Summary:
In zip code 46221, there is one middle school, Decatur Middle School, serving grades 7-8. This school is part of the MSD Decatur Township district.
Decatur Middle School is the only middle school in the 46221 zip code, making it the sole focus for parents in this area. The school serves 985 students and has a student-teacher ratio of 14.9. A significant majority of students, 81.32%, qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high proportion of economically disadvantaged students. The school spends $11,760 per student. However, Decatur Middle School faces considerable academic challenges, consistently ranking in the bottom quartile of Indiana middle schools with a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger. Its chronic absenteeism rate is 17.8%, which is a concern for student engagement and academic success. Test scores in English Language Arts and Math are below both the district and state averages, with proficiency rates of 22.06% in ELA and 12.89% in Math for the 2024-2025 school year. Interestingly, the school shows exceptionally high proficiency rates in Biology, with 88.68% in 2024-2025 and 95.65% in 2023-2024, which is a notable outlier compared to its performance in other core subjects.
The district, MSD Decatur Township, ranks 275 out of 380 districts in Indiana, also receiving a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger. This suggests that the challenges faced by Decatur Middle School may be reflective of broader district-level issues. While the spending per student is substantial, the low academic outcomes in core subjects raise questions about the effectiveness of resource allocation. The student-teacher ratio is within a reasonable range, suggesting that overcrowding is not the primary factor contributing to academic struggles. The high rate of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch highlights the need for robust support services within the school to address potential barriers to academic achievement.
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