West Millbrook Middle

West Millbrook Middle is a large Wake County Schools middle school in the northern part of Raleigh, NC, serving 1,164 students in grades 6–8. The school has earned a 4-star state rating and ranks 148th out of 778 North Carolina middle schools, putting it in the top 20% statewide. That's a major turnaround: just a few years ago, the school sat in the 38th percentile. Today, roughly 7 in 10 students are proficient in math and reading, comfortably above both the district and state averages.

Overall scores are strong, but there are a few gaps parents should know about. Seventh-grade reading proficiency is 65.4%, which trails nearby schools like Martin Middle (78.7%), Wakefield Middle (75.0%), and Leesville Road Middle (73.8%). The school also modestly lags the district average in 8th grade science. Meanwhile, test outcomes vary widely by student group: white, multiracial, female, and male students perform very well relative to state peers, while Hispanic students, English language learners, and students from low-income backgrounds score near the bottom of the state distribution for their groups. This gap is the school's biggest challenge going forward.

Chronic absenteeism is another concern. At 25%, about one in four students at West Millbrook Middle missed enough school to be considered chronically absent last year — noticeably higher than nearby schools such as Leesville Road Middle (18.7%), Wakefield Middle (19.1%), and Pine Hollow Middle (19.8%), all of which have similar poverty rates. In short, this is a solidly strong school with a clear upward trajectory and real momentum. For most families, it is a good option to consider. But for families of students who need additional academic support — or who struggle with attendance — it is worth asking the school directly about how it plans to close these gaps.