Summary:
The Dallas County R-I school district in Missouri has only one middle school, Buffalo Middle, which serves grades 5-8 with a total enrollment of 482 students. While Buffalo Middle has an average to slightly above-average performance compared to other Missouri middle schools, with a 2-3 star rating from SchoolDigger, the school faces some challenges that are worth noting.
Academically, Buffalo Middle's proficiency rates on MAP tests have been mixed, with some grades performing above the state average and others below. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 6th-grade math proficiency (50.7%) was higher than the state average (45.5%), while 5th-grade science proficiency (52.5%) was also above the state average (42.2%). However, the school's overall academic performance has been relatively inconsistent across different subject areas and grade levels.
Another area of concern is Buffalo Middle's high chronic absenteeism rate of 19.2% in the 2023-2024 school year, which is significantly higher than the state average. Additionally, the school serves a predominantly low-income student population, with 62.03% of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. While the school's per-student spending is slightly above the state average, and its student-teacher ratio is relatively low at 12.3, these socioeconomic factors may present unique challenges that the school must address to improve student outcomes.
Thank you for your feedback!