Summary:
ZIP code 97301 in Salem, Oregon contains five middle schools, all serving grades 6–8 and all belonging to Salem-Keizer School District 24J, a district ranked 105th of 141 in Oregon at the 26th percentile with 1 star. Together they enroll 2,797 students. Two are small charters with 279 students combined; three are large traditional middle schools with 2,518 students combined. Enrollment ranges from 95 at Jane Goodall Environmental Middle Charter School to 997 at Waldo Middle School.
The two charters are the clear top performers. Howard Street Charter leads in English Language Arts (66.9%) and math (51.7%), with science at 38.9%, and ranks 42nd of 371 (89th percentile, 4 stars). Jane Goodall Environmental Middle Charter School posts the best science score in the ZIP at 59.4%, plus 57.7% ELA and 48.5% math, ranking 48th of 371 (87th percentile, 4 stars). Both exceed state averages in all three subjects (state: 43.8% ELA, 32.9% math, 30.6% science). Both also have low chronic absenteeism — 6.2% at Howard Street Charter and 17.2% at Jane Goodall Environmental Middle Charter School — far below the district's 43.1% and the state's 33.5%.
Among the traditional schools, Parrish Middle School is strongest and improving: ELA 32.5%, math 26.5%, science 12.8%, ranking 262nd of 371 (29th percentile, 1 star), up from the 13th percentile in 2023–2024 and 21st in 2024–2025. Its 7th-grade math proficiency of 36.3% beats both district and state. Waldo Middle School (ELA 22.5%, math 13.1%, science 11.3%) and Houck Middle School (ELA 21.2%, math 14.4%, science 12.5%) sit near the bottom at 342nd and 339th of 371, both 0 stars, with absenteeism of 46.0% and 49.3%. Spending does not track results here: Waldo Middle School spends the most per student ($20,095) while Howard Street Charter spends the least ($10,045). Note that Howard Street Charter's reported student-teacher ratio of 184.0 appears to be a reporting artifact.
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