Summary:
Southern Local (Ohio) serves roughly 790 students across three schools: Southern Local Elementary School (PK–5, 389 students), Southern Local Junior/Senior High School (grades 6–12, 391 students), and Southern Online Academy (grades 3–12, just 10 students). There is no separate middle school, so grades 6–8 are housed in the junior/senior high, meaning that school's test results include middle-grade scores. The Southern Local district overall ranks 587 of 773, the 24th percentile, with 1 star.
Both ranked schools earn 2 stars in the latest 2025–2026 rankings, even though the district's overall rating is 1 star. The elementary school has the stronger rank — 981 of 1,560, 37th percentile — but has slipped from 46th percentile in 2023–2024. The junior/senior high sits at 543 of 795, 32nd percentile, up from 23rd percentile the year before, and it improved in 10 of 13 reported tests year over year. Graduation is a shared strength: 98.4% at the high school versus 98.5% districtwide. Chronic absenteeism is the sharpest contrast — 31.0% at the junior/senior high, 16.1% at the elementary, and 22.3% districtwide.
In 2025–2026, the elementary school's bright spots include 5th Grade Science at 70.2% and 5th Grade ELA at 70.2%, but 4th Grade Math (45.9%) and 4th Grade ELA (41.0%) fall well below state averages. The junior/senior high beats the state in Geometry (55.2%), matches it in American History (73.2%), and edges above it in Biology (68.2%), while 8th Grade Science (30.6%) and 8th Grade Math (26.3%) lag badly. Southern Online Academy's only reported score, English II at 27.3%, and its 0.0% chronic absenteeism should be read cautiously with only 10 students. Free/reduced lunch data is blank for all three schools and should be treated as unknown, and spending figures date only to 2018–2019.
Thank you for your feedback!