Summary:
Hastings Area School District is home to a single middle school, Hastings Middle School, which serves grades 6 through 8 and enrolls 584 students in a small-city setting in Michigan.
Hastings Middle School is a strong performer overall, currently ranked in the top 25% of Michigan middle schools (75th percentile) with a 4-star rating for the 2025-2026 school year. This marks a solid rebound from last year’s 66th percentile ranking, bringing the school back to the level it achieved two years ago. The school’s standout subject is 8th-grade science, where 58.3% of students are proficient—a remarkable 19.1 percentage points above the state average. Social studies is also a clear strength (60.9% proficient, +10.6 points), as is 8th-grade ELA on the PSAT (75.5% proficient, +10.7 points), signaling strong college readiness in reading and writing. Even 8th-grade math on the PSAT beats the state by nearly 10 points (42.8% vs. 33.2%).
However, the picture is more mixed in earlier grades. While 7th-grade ELA (41.8%) and math (33.2%) are at or slightly above state averages, 6th-grade math is a notable weak spot, with only 26.6% proficiency—5.3 points below the state. This suggests the transition to middle school math may need extra support. The school also has a high chronic absenteeism rate of 27.2%, which is well above the district’s own average of 20.7% and nearly matches the state average, even though academic results remain strong. With a student-teacher ratio of 18:1 and per-student spending of $14,265, Hastings Middle School offers a solid, well-rounded education with clear excellence in science and 8th-grade literacy, but families should be aware of the math dip in 6th grade and the absenteeism challenge.
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