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Union Middle

Q: Is Union Middle a good school?

Yes. Union Middle ranks in the top 7.2% of Virginia middle schools.

Q: How many students attend Union Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 561 students attended Union Middle.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Union Middle?

Students at Union Middle are 93% White, 2% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic, 2% African American.

Q: What high school do graduates of Union Middle attend?

Students who attend Union Middle usually go on to attend Central High

Public Grades 5-8

30^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 416 Virginia Middle Schools

Better than 93% of Virginia middle schools

Summary

Union Middle in Big Stone Gap, Virginia, serves 561 students in grades 5–8 and is part of the highly ranked Wise County Public Schools district, which ranks 2nd of 131 districts in Virginia. Union has climbed from 172nd in the state in 2020-2021 to 30th of 416 middle schools today, earning a 5-star rating and placing it in the top 10% of Virginia middle schools. It is one of several strong middle schools in the region, though two fellow Wise County schools — L.F. Addington Middle and Coeburn Middle — rank even higher.

What makes Union's success especially meaningful is that nearly 94% of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch, yet the school's low-income students rank in the 94th percentile statewide and its disabled students rank in the 95th percentile. The school also shines in specific subjects: 7th-grade civics proficiency is 92.42%, the highest among nearby schools and well above the state average of 70.1%. Fifth-grade math proficiency is 89.92%, and 8th-grade Algebra I scores are a perfect 100%. Male students rank in the 96th percentile statewide while female students rank in the 83rd percentile — a notable gap worth exploring.

The clearest area for improvement is 8th-grade math, where only 51.72% of students are proficient, compared to 96.23% at Coeburn Middle and 86.44% at L.F. Addington Middle. Chronic absenteeism is another concern: 20% of students are chronically absent, the highest rate among nearby schools, well above the state average of 14.8% and far above the 1.1% rate at Pennington Middle. Union also spends the least per student ($9,209) and has the highest student-teacher ratio (12.0) among its peers, making its strong academic results all the more impressive — though these resource constraints could become challenging if attendance and math performance don't improve.

561

Students ?

12.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,209

Per pupil spending ?

93.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3137 Second Avenue East
Big Stone Gap, VA 24219

(276) 523-0195

District: Wise County Public Schools

Students who attend Union Middle usually attend:

High:	Central High
	Eastside High
	Union High

Feeder schools for Union Middle:

Elementary:	Coeburn Primary
	J.W. Adams Combined
	St. Paul Elementary
	Union Primary
	More...
	Wise Primary

Racial breakdown:

White:

93.0%

Two or more races:

2.5%

Hispanic:

2.3%

See top rated Virginia middle schools

Compare Union Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 76th percentile in 2016 → 93rd in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Virginia average (84% vs 69% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 7% of Virginia middle schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 17 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school84%

District avg87%

Virginia avg69%

30^th of 416

Virginia public middle schools ?

Top 7%▲ up 17 pts since 2016

From top 24% (2016) to top 7% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Virginia Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 3Middle Schools in the Wise County Public Schools

2^nd of 131Wise County Public Schools among Virginia districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	82.3	30 of 416	92.8%	★★★★★
2025	79.8	48 of 419	88.5%	★★★★☆
2024	80.8	53 of 417	87.3%	★★★★☆
2023	80.0	55 of 422	87.0%	★★★★☆
2022	60.3	146 of 415	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	53.1	172 of 419	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.9	136 of 424	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	65.4	100 of 413	75.8%	★★★★☆
2017	72.4	66 of 415	84.1%	★★★★☆
2016	66.2	97 of 409	76.3%	★★★★☆
2015	72.6	67 of 412	83.7%	★★★★☆
2014	70.3	74 of 416	82.2%	★★★★☆
2013	53.5	159 of 416	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2012	59.5	121 of 413	70.7%	★★★★☆
2011	47.2	230 of 413	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2010	33.0	320 of 408	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	39.2	264 of 390	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2008	50.3	200 of 391	48.8%	★★☆☆☆
2007	49.6	198 of 387	48.8%	★★☆☆☆
2006	42.7	245 of 383	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2005	49.9	211 of 340	37.9%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	89.6	14 of 292	95.2%	★★★★★
2024	87.6	15 of 281	94.7%	★★★★★
2023	81.0	35 of 278	87.4%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	76.1	68 of 409	83.4%	★★★★☆
2025	74.3	79 of 403	80.4%	★★★★☆
2024	77.2	63 of 407	84.5%	★★★★☆
2023	79.4	55 of 411	86.6%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	85.9	24 of 401	94.0%	★★★★★
2025	88.4	21 of 403	94.8%	★★★★★
2024	88.8	17 of 402	95.8%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	85.5	18 of 410	95.6%	★★★★★
2025	83.2	30 of 404	92.6%	★★★★★
2024	83.0	32 of 407	92.1%	★★★★★
2023	79.7	55 of 409	86.6%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	70.0	95 of 400	76.3%	★★★★☆
2025	64.3	120 of 400	70.0%	★★★★☆
2024	66.9	116 of 396	70.7%	★★★★☆
2023	67.4	115 of 402	71.4%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Male (2026)96th percentile+3 vs school

Disabled (2026)95th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)94th percentile~ school

Female (2026)83rd percentile-9 vs school

White (2026)76th percentile-17 vs school

By subject vs Virginia (2025-2026) ?

Algebra I100%+7 vs state

Civics and Economics92%+22 vs state

English Reading86%+13 vs state

Science79%+13 vs state

Mathematics78%+18 vs state

★

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Schools Near Union Middle

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SOL Algebra I (2026)	SOL Mathematics (2026)				SOL Science (2026)		SOL English Reading (2026)				SOL Geography (2026)	SOL World History I (2026)	SOL Civics and Economics (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SOL Algebra I 8th Grade	SOL Mathematics 5th Grade	SOL Mathematics 6th Grade	SOL Mathematics 7th Grade	SOL Mathematics 8th Grade	SOL Science 5th Grade	SOL Science 8th Grade	SOL English Reading 5th Grade	SOL English Reading 6th Grade	SOL English Reading 7th Grade	SOL English Reading 8th Grade	SOL Geography 8th Grade	SOL World History I 8th Grade	SOL Civics and Economics 7th Grade	SOL Civics and Economics 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Union Middle	Public	5-8	3137 Second Avenue East	Big Stone Gap	24219	Wise County	Wise County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(276) 523-0195	561	46	12.0	93.8%	522 (93.0%)	10 (1.8%)	13 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	14 (2.5%)	82.3	30^th of 416 public middle schools	92.8%		79.8	48^th of 419 public middle schools	88.5%	18	100.0	89.9	78.1	80.0	51.7	81.3	77.5	81.5	89.8	88.7	82.5			92.4		$9,209	$472	$8,737
L.F. Addington Middle	Public	5-8	324 School St	Wise	24293	Wise County	Wise County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(276) 328-8821	387	35	11.2	117.6%	359 (92.8%)	4 (1.0%)	6 (1.6%)	8 (2.1%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	8 (2.1%)	89.1	9^th of 416 public middle schools	97.8%		91.2	6^th of 419 public middle schools	98.6%	3	100.0	89.5	93.8	87.5	86.4	80.2	84.2	77.9	89.7	93.2	88.1			83.0		$9,997	$670	$9,327
Rye Cove Intermediate	Public	5-7	158 Memorial School Lane	Clinchport	24244	Scott County	Scott County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 940-2322	138	15	9.3	79.0%	122 (88.4%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.3%)	61	158^th of 416 public middle schools	62.0%		64.3	147^th of 419 public middle schools	64.9%	11		80.7	69.1	81.8		64.9		66.7	73.8	75.0				70.5		$11,149	$1,169	$9,980
Coeburn Middle	Public	5-8	518 Centre Ave NE	Coeburn	24230	Wise County	Wise County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(276) 395-2135	304	28	11.0	92.8%	286 (94.1%)	8 (2.6%)	5 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.6%)	88.1	11^th of 416 public middle schools	97.4%		86.6	16^th of 419 public middle schools	96.2%	5	100.0	84.4	79.4	77.6	96.2	73.4	86.5	73.4	96.8	87.8	93.2			82.7		$11,376	$842	$10,534
Pennington Middle	Public	6-8	121 Bobcat Circle	Pennington Gap	24277	Lee County	Lee County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 546-1453	278	31	9.1	99.6%	269 (96.8%)	4 (1.4%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.1%)	63	149^th of 416 public middle schools	64.2%		57.9	189^th of 419 public middle schools	54.9%	40	100.0		73.4	85.9	78.1		69.5		77.2	71.8	69.5		100.0	66.7	< 50%	$11,496	$2,149	$9,347
Gate City Middle	Public	7-8	170 Harry Fry Drive	Gate City	24251	Scott County	Scott County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(276) 386-6065	276	28	10.0	78.3%	261 (94.6%)	3 (1.1%)	6 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)	66.4	131^st of 416 public middle schools	68.5%		79.5	51^st of 419 public middle schools	87.8%	80	100.0			72.9	64.9		65.5			73.6	75.2	93.3		77.1		$9,432	$650	$8,782

Frequently Asked Questions about Union Middle

Is Union Middle a good school?

Yes. Union Middle ranks in the top 7.2% of Virginia middle schools.

What is the racial makeup of Union Middle?

Students at Union Middle are 93% White, 2% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic, 2% African American.

How many students attend Union Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 561 students attended Union Middle.

What high school do graduates of Union Middle attend?

Students who attend Union Middle usually go on to attend Central High

What district is Union Middle in?

Wise County Public Schools

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Schools in Big Stone Gap, VA

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Latest Virginia data All new data »

2025–26 SOL test scoresAug 25, 2026

2021–22 school spending dataFeb 16, 2026

2022–23 through 2023–24 school spending dataFeb 10, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 6, 2026

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Virginia Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.