Summary:
In zip code 75180 (Balch Springs, TX), there is one middle school, Young Women's Steam Academy At Balch Springs Middle, serving grades 6 through 9 with 751 students, and it is part of the Dallas Independent School District (Isd).
This school presents a unique "tale of two schools" within one building. While its standard middle school courses, such as 6th-grade reading (47.30% proficient) and 8th-grade social studies (24.76% proficient), often trail state averages, its high school-level End of Course (EOC) exams are exceptional. For the 2025-2026 school year, proficiency rates in Algebra I (79.44%), Biology (82.61%), and English I Reading (68%) dramatically outperform both the district and state. This suggests the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) focus creates a powerful pipeline for students accelerated into advanced coursework, even as the school serves a population where nearly 96% of students are economically disadvantaged. The school's overall state ranking has also improved, rising from the 39th percentile (2 stars) in 2023-2024 to the 53rd percentile (3 stars) in 2025-2026.
Key metrics include a student-teacher ratio of 15.3:1, spending of $10,857 per student, and a dropout rate of 2.7% (lower than the district average of 3.2%). However, the data shows significant year-over-year volatility, with scores in subjects like English II Reading jumping from 28.57% to 58.82% in one year, while 7th-grade Reading dropped from 54.59% to 44.78%. A notable anomaly occurred in 2024-2025 when 7th-grade math proficiency was an extremely low 6.61%, likely because the most advanced students were already taking Algebra I. For parents, this school offers a strong advanced academic track for motivated students, but the performance in standard grade-level subjects is more inconsistent.
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