Is Penn Wood Middle School a good school?

Penn Wood Middle School ranks in the bottom 16.0% of Pennsylvania middle schools.

How many students attend Penn Wood Middle School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 635 students attended Penn Wood Middle School.

What is the racial makeup of Penn Wood Middle School?

Students at Penn Wood Middle School are 84% African American, 5% Two or more races, 5% Hispanic, 4% White, 1% Asian.

What high school do graduates of Penn Wood Middle School attend?

Students who attend Penn Wood Middle School usually go on to attend Penn Wood High School

Penn Wood Middle School

Summary:

Penn Wood Middle School is a public middle school located in Darby, Pennsylvania, serving grades 7-8 with a total enrollment of 683 students. The school is part of the William Penn School District, which is ranked 533 out of 610 school districts in Pennsylvania and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Penn Wood Middle School consistently ranks in the bottom quartile of Pennsylvania middle schools, with a statewide rank between 630-780 out of 728-891 schools over the past 10 years. The school's performance on PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) tests is significantly below the state and district averages across all subject areas and grade levels. While the school's overall performance is low, the school's performance for certain student subgroups, such as female, male, multi-racial students, English Language Learners, and students with disabilities, is even more concerning, ranking in the bottom quartile or bottom 20% in the state. The school has an extremely high percentage of students (over 99%) who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage among the student population.

When comparing Penn Wood Middle School to nearby middle schools, the performance gap is stark. For example, Richardson Middle School in the Springfield School District, located just 4.55 miles away, ranks in the top 5% of Pennsylvania middle schools and significantly outperforms Penn Wood in all academic areas. Despite the high per-student spending and the school's long-standing low performance, there is little evidence of meaningful improvement in academic outcomes over the past 10 years, and the school's dropout rates are consistently higher than the state average.

Detail:

Public 7-8

121 Summit St
Darby, PA 19023-2298

(610) 586-1804

District: William Penn School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
748^th of 891 Pennsylvania Middle Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $19,787

Students who attend Penn Wood Middle School usually attend:

High:

Penn Wood High School

Feeder schools for Penn Wood Middle School:

Elementary:	Aldan Elementary School
	Ardmore Avenue Elementary School
	Bell Avenue School
	Colwyn Elementary School
	More...
	East Lansdowne Elementary School
	Park Lane Elementary School
	W B Evans Elementary School
	Walnut Street Elementary School

Student/teacher ratio: 11.9

Number of students: 635

Racial breakdown:

African American:

84.4%

Two or more races:

4.7%

Hispanic:

4.6%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 100%

See top rated Pennsylvania middle schools

Compare Penn Wood Middle School to nearby middle schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Penn Wood Middle School ranks worse than 84% of middle schools in Pennsylvania. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 14.1. (See more...)

The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (84.4%), two or more races (4.7%), Hispanic (4.6%). (See more...)

Compare Details 100% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Penn Wood Middle School is 11.9. (See more...)

Compare Penn Wood Middle School employs 53 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Penn Wood Middle School is $19,787. (See more...)

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Penn Wood Middle School:

SchoolDigger ranks Penn Wood Middle School 748^th of 891 Pennsylvania public middle schools. (See Penn Wood Middle School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Multi-racial students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Male students:

African American students:

White students:

William Penn School District:

SchoolDigger ranks William Penn School District 533^rd of 610 Pennsylvania school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Rating:

Read all reviews and ratings detail for Penn Wood Middle School.

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Rank History for Penn Wood Middle School

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Rank History for all students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile
2009	10.15	705^th	770	8.4%
2010	10.20	739^th	805	8.2%
2011	16.92	722^nd	825	12.5%
2012	19.00	703^rd	834	15.7%
2013	11.48	658^th	758	13.2%
2014	11.96	630^th	728	13.5%
2015	16.74	669^th	835	19.9%
2016	16.08	705^th	870	19.0%
2017	11.76	742^nd	877	15.4%
2018	13.66	727^th	861	15.6%
2019	10.49	780^th	891	12.5%
2021	14.62	666^th	797	16.4%
2022	13.02	748^th	883	15.3%
2023	13.90	743^rd	893	16.8%
2024	14.10	748^th	891	16.0%

See the entire list of Pennsylvania Middle School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	26.29	137^th	187	26.7%
2024	20.66	167^th	199	16.1%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	18.13	142^nd	143	0.7%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	17.67	731^st	874	16.4%
2024	18.53	725^th	877	17.3%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	13.83	736^th	860	14.4%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	20.09	580^th	660	12.1%
2024	23.24	558^th	672	17.0%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Male students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	14.35	731^st	870	16.0%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	35.97	260^th	421	38.2%
2024	33.15	253^rd	408	38.0%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for White students at Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	PA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	39.40	413^th	673	38.6%

See the entire list of Best Pennsylvania Middle Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Pennsylvania Dept of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: Pennsylvania Dept of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)

100%

by a student
Monday, July 14, 2014

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Enrollment information for Penn Wood Middle School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
2007	41	799	11	9	6	n/a	n/a	866
2008	32	700	11	1	5	n/a	n/a	749
2009	29	752	7	1	3	n/a	n/a	792
2010	34	779	11	7	3	n/a	n/a	834
2011	36	782	13	8	3	0	0	842
2012	31	715	8	8	3	0	1	766
2013	26	723	7	8	0	0	2	766
2014	27	721	10	8	0	0	0	766
2015	29	707	8	12	3	0	3	762
2016	24	686	6	18	4	0	5	743
2017	20	665	11	21	1	0	5	723
2018	16	663	12	22	2	0	6	721
2019	15	691	11	28	3	0	12	760
2020	21	657	9	22	4	0	17	730
2021	24	623	6	22	5	0	21	701
2022	18	609	6	30	4	0	22	689
2023	24	589	9	35	4	0	22	683
2024	27	536	8	29	4	1	30	635

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Penn Wood Middle School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2007	866	55.3	15.7	n/a
2008	749	53.3	14.1	n/a
2009	792	57.3	13.8	62.6
2010	834	56.6	14.7	73.6
2011	842	57.9	14.5	79.5
2012	766	57.6	13.2	79.6
2013	766	55.1	13.9	81.2
2014	766	53.6	14.2	81.7
2015	762	54.0	14.1	75.3
2016	743	54.0	13.7	79.3
2017	723	54.6	13.2	78.3
2018	721	53.6	13.4	99.4
2019	760	54.1	14.0	99.5
2020	730	56.6	12.8	99.9
2021	701	55.0	12.7	99.6
2022	689	48.0	14.3	99.6
2023	683	53.0	12.8	100
2024	635	53.0	11.9	100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Penn Wood Middle School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2007	866	55.3	15.7	n/a
2008	749	53.3	14.1	n/a
2009	792	57.3	13.8	62.6
2010	834	56.6	14.7	73.6
2011	842	57.9	14.5	79.5
2012	766	57.6	13.2	79.6
2013	766	55.1	13.9	81.2
2014	766	53.6	14.2	81.7
2015	762	54.0	14.1	75.3
2016	743	54.0	13.7	79.3
2017	723	54.6	13.2	78.3
2018	721	53.6	13.4	99.4
2019	760	54.1	14.0	99.5
2020	730	56.6	12.8	99.9
2021	701	55.0	12.7	99.6
2022	689	48.0	14.3	99.6
2023	683	53.0	12.8	100
2024	635	53.0	11.9	100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Penn Wood Middle School

Year	Expenditures from Federal Funds	Expenditures from State and Local Funds	Total Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019	$799 (4.8%)	$15,864 (95.2%)	$16,663
2020	$826 (4.8%)	$16,382 (95.2%)	$17,209
2021	$1,476 (8.3%)	$16,304 (91.7%)	$17,780
2022	$834 (4.4%)	$17,932 (95.6%)	$18,766
2023	$1,400 (7.1%)	$18,387 (92.9%)	$19,786

Data source: Pennsylvania Department of Education

Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Penn Wood Middle School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Rank Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Ranks 780^th of 891 Middle schools	Ranks 743^rd of 893 Middle schools	4.3%

Test Scores

	% proficient Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	% proficient Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
7th Grade Math (Penn Wood Middle School)	8	10.5	2.5%
7th Grade Math (Pennsylvania)	38.2	33.2	5%
7th Grade English Language Arts (Penn Wood Middle School)	25.7	33.1	7.4%
7th Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	60.5	54.5	6%
8th Grade Math (Penn Wood Middle School)	5.5	4.8	0.7%
8th Grade Math (Pennsylvania)	32.2	26	6.2%
8th Grade Science (Penn Wood Middle School)	25.2	22.6	2.6%
8th Grade Science (Pennsylvania)	58.2	57	1.2%
8th Grade English Language Arts (Penn Wood Middle School)	30.9	22.3	8.6%
8th Grade English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	57.9	52.8	5.1%
All Grades Math (Penn Wood Middle School)	6.7	7.7	1%
All Grades Math (Pennsylvania)	42.4	39.3	3.1%
All Grades Science (Penn Wood Middle School)	25.2	22.6	2.6%
All Grades Science (Pennsylvania)	68	65.6	2.4%
All Grades English Language Arts (Penn Wood Middle School)	28.2	27.6	0.6%
All Grades English Language Arts (Pennsylvania)	60.9	53.8	7.1%

Student Body

	Number of students Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Number of students Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Total Students	760	683	10.1%
African American	691	589	14.8%
American Indian	3	4	33.3%
Asian	11	9	18.2%
Hispanic	28	35	25%
Pacific Islander	0	0
White	15	24	60%
Two or More Races	12	22	83.3%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	99.5%	100%	0.5%

Schools Near Penn Wood Middle School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				PSSA Math (2024)					PSSA Science (2024)		PSSA English Language Arts (2024)					Per Pupil Expenditures (2023)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSSA Math 5th Grade	PSSA Math 6th Grade	PSSA Math 7th Grade	PSSA Math 8th Grade	PSSA Math All Grades	PSSA Science 8th Grade	PSSA Science All Grades	PSSA English Language Arts 5th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 6th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 7th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSSA English Language Arts All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Penn Wood Middle School	Public	7-8	121 Summit St	Darby	19023	Delaware County	William Penn School District	No	No	No	Yes	(610) 586-1804	635	53	11.9	100.0%	27 (4.3%)	536 (84.4%)	29 (4.6%)	8 (1.3%)	4 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	30 (4.7%)	14.1	748^th of 891 public middle schools	16.0%		13.9	743^rd of 893 public middle schools	16.8%	5			7.1	7.4	7.2	20.3	20.3			25.3	31.1	28.5	$19,787	$1,400	$18,387
Tilden William T Middle School	Public	5-8	6601 Elmwood Ave	Philadelphia	19142	Philadelphia County	Philadelphia City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(215) 400-8170	278	22	12.4	98.9%	7 (2.5%)	210 (75.5%)	35 (12.6%)	23 (8.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.1%)	7.1	849^th of 891 public middle schools	4.7%		6.1	872^nd of 893 public middle schools	2.4%	23	4.5	5.3	1.4	1.2	2.5	10.8	10.8	8.4	22.0	17.4	16.5	17.3	$19,844	$4,631	$15,214
Richard Allen Preparatory Charter School	Public, Charter	5-9	2601 S 58th St	Philadelphia	19143	Philadelphia County	Richard Allen Preparatory Charter School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(215) 878-1544	368	31	11.8	100.3%	2 (0.5%)	337 (91.6%)	12 (3.3%)	13 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.1%)	10.9	780^th of 891 public middle schools	12.5%		10.8	784^th of 893 public middle schools	12.2%	4	12.5	6.7	3.7	2.7	5.4	21.2	21.2	31.3	22.7	21.3	28.8	25.7	$18,033	$5,900	$12,133
Beverly Hills Middle School	Public	6-8	1400 Garrett Rd	Upper Darby	19082	Delaware County	Upper Darby School District	No	No	No	Yes	(610) 626-9317	1,494	102	14.6	100.1%	58 (3.9%)	724 (48.5%)	351 (23.5%)	298 (19.9%)	2 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	60 (4.0%)	13.1	757^th of 891 public middle schools	15.0%		16.5	718^th of 893 public middle schools	19.6%	39		8.5	10.3	8.7	9.2	23.1	23.1		22.1	25.2	24.8	24.0	$14,658	$1,827	$12,831
Drexel Hill Middle School	Public	6-8	3001 State Rd	Drexel Hill	19026	Delaware County	Upper Darby School District	No	No	No	No	(610) 853-4580	1,290	93	13.8	100.0%	358 (27.8%)	654 (50.7%)	118 (9.1%)	77 (6.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	82 (6.4%)	20.5	685^th of 891 public middle schools	23.1%		30.1	621^st of 893 public middle schools	30.5%	64		15.1	13.9	12.8	13.9	35.3	35.3		29.8	29.8	28.7	29.3	$15,759	$911	$14,848
Middle Years Alternative	Public	5-8	4725 Fairmont Ave	Philadelphia	19139	Philadelphia County	Philadelphia City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(215) 400-7720	155	13	11.5	100.0%	1 (0.6%)	124 (80.0%)	21 (13.5%)	5 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.6%)	29.6	619^th of 891 public middle schools	30.5%		28.8	626^th of 893 public middle schools	29.9%	7	18.2	7.7	4.9	20.0	13.0	46.7	46.7	33.3	26.9	19.5	46.6	33.8	$22,950	$6,296	$16,654
Universal Vare Charter School	Public, Charter	5-8	2100 South 24th Street	Philadelphia	19145	Philadelphia County	Universal Vare Charter School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(215) 952-8611	150	6	25.0	95.3%	0 (0.0%)	101 (67.3%)	17 (11.3%)	24 (16.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	7 (4.7%)	14.5	741^st of 891 public middle schools	16.8%		13.8	744^th of 893 public middle schools	16.7%	3	0.0	0.0	6.6	0.0	2.3	26.3	26.3	14.8	4.5	37.8	30.8	25.6	$21,579	$9,160	$12,419
Science Leadership Academy Middle School	Public	5-8	3610 Warren St	Philadelphia	19104	Philadelphia County	Philadelphia City School District	No	No	No	Yes	(215) 400-8320	352	18	19.3	100.0%	81 (23.0%)	209 (59.4%)	20 (5.7%)	23 (6.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.1%)	50.2	461^st of 891 public middle schools	48.3%		43.3	526^th of 893 public middle schools	41.1%	65	33.8	32.2	16.1	18.3	25.0	41.3	41.3	50.6	65.5	60.4	50.6	56.7	$16,188	$5,077	$11,111
Richardson Middle School	Public	6-8	20 W Woodland Ave	Springfield	19064	Delaware County	Springfield School District	No	No	No	No	(610) 938-6300	1,102	73	15.0	24.1%	838 (76.0%)	90 (8.2%)	45 (4.1%)	93 (8.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (3.3%)	94	37^th of 891 public middle schools	95.8%		92.7	39^th of 893 public middle schools	95.6%	2		75.3	67.2	51.1	64.2	73.3	73.3		86.3	83.9	74.0	81.2	$15,794	$343	$15,451
Ridley Middle School	Public	6-8	400 Free St.	Ridley Park	19078	Delaware County	Ridley School District	No	No	No	No	(610) 534-1900	1,307	89	14.6	56.0%	866 (66.3%)	226 (17.3%)	71 (5.4%)	41 (3.1%)	4 (0.3%)	4 (0.3%)	95 (7.3%)	50.6	458^th of 891 public middle schools	48.6%		48.3	491^st of 893 public middle schools	45.0%	33		30.3	31.7	21.8	27.9	45.5	45.5		54.0	47.5	52.6	51.4	$24,888	$742	$24,146

Penn Wood Middle School

Penn Wood Middle School:

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

William Penn School District:

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Rank History for Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for all students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for Female students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for Disabled students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for Male students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for African American students at Penn Wood Middle School

Rank History for White students at Penn Wood Middle School

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Enrollment information for Penn Wood Middle School

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Penn Wood Middle School

Student/Teacher Ratio Penn Wood Middle School

Per Pupil Expenditures for Penn Wood Middle School

Impact of COVID-19 on Penn Wood Middle School

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Student Body

Schools Near Penn Wood Middle School

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