Hayes Intermediate School

Hayes Intermediate School is a grades 4–6 school at 4436 Haughn Rd in Grove City, Ohio, serving 464 students — the smallest intermediate school in its comparison group — as part of the South-Western City district.

Hayes is the standout performer among nearby schools. On the 2025-26 Ohio State Tests, its proficiency rates ranged from 73.9% to 86.7%, averaging about 82% — well above the district's roughly 54% and the state's roughly 61%. Every one of its five tested subjects beat the state average, by margins of +16.3 to +27.4 points. The sharpest comparison is Park Street Intermediate School, just 0.42 miles away, serving the same grades 4–6 in the same district: it scores about 18 points lower on average. Hayes' chronic absenteeism of 13.8% is the lowest in the entire comparison set and less than half the district's 32.1%, while nearby schools range from 21.7% up to 72.3%. Notably, Hayes' free/reduced-lunch share has risen sharply, from 19.4% to 30.4% in two years, even as its scores climbed — the opposite of the usual pattern. Its student-teacher ratio (17.6) and spending are mid-pack, so neither explains the results.

The improvement is broad and sustained: four of five subjects gained over four years, with grade-6 math rising from about 67% to 83%. The one soft spot is grade-6 English language arts, at 73.9% — the school's lowest result, its only metric below 80%, and the only one that hasn't improved over four years. Parents may also want to note the school's rapidly rising poverty indicator and confirm what's driving it. Overall, Hayes pairs strong achievement with the best attendance in its area.