Summary:
ZIP code 97540 has one public middle school, Talent Middle School, serving grades 6–8 with 485 students as part of Phoenix-Talent School District 4 in Talent, Oregon.
The school is rated 1 star and ranks 292 out of 371 Oregon schools in 2025–2026, placing it in the 21st percentile. Its rank has improved from the 10th percentile in 2023–2024 to 20th in 2024–2025 and 21st in 2025–2026, but it remains in the bottom quartile. In 2025–2026 OSAS all-grade tests, proficiency is 29.0% in English language arts, 18.2% in math, and 21.7% in science, compared with district results of 36.9%, 25.4%, and 23.9%, and state results of 43.8%, 32.9%, and 30.6%. Math is the weakest subject, though math proficiency rises by grade: 14.2% in 6th, 17.2% in 7th, and 23.1% in 8th. ELA is relatively flat at 27.4%, 29.5%, and 30.2%. Grade-level bright spots include 6th grade ELA at 27.4% versus the district’s 26.7%, 8th grade math at 23.1% versus the district’s 23.8%, and 8th grade science at 21.7%, matching the district.
Other metrics offer a mixed picture. Chronic absenteeism is 33.0% at the school, lower than the district’s 35.8% and slightly lower than the state’s 33.5%, making it a relative strength even though about one-third of students are chronically absent. Per-student spending is reported at $23,201, and the student-teacher ratio is 18.3:1, implying roughly 26–27 teachers for 485 students. The free/reduced lunch figure is reported as 102.27%, which cannot be a literal share of enrollment and should be treated as a data-quality anomaly. Overall, parents should know that this is the only middle school in ZIP 97540, has clear academic challenges especially in math, is improving in rank but still rated 1 star, and has absenteeism that is better than district and state averages.
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