Summary:
Boone County Schools in West Virginia operates two middle schools serving grades 6-8: Madison Middle School (398 students) and Sherman Junior High School (213 students), with the district ranking in the bottom fifth of West Virginia districts overall.
The standout school here is Sherman Junior High School, which ranks in the top 20% of West Virginia middle schools (31st out of 161) and has improved dramatically over the past year, jumping from 60th to 31st. Sherman exceeds state averages in both math (46% vs. 39.4%) and English Language Arts (66.3% vs. 47.6%), and its 6th grade ELA proficiency is exceptional at 78.2%—nearly 31 points above the state average. In contrast, Madison Middle School ranks near the bottom of the state (151st out of 161) and falls below state averages in every subject. The gap between the two schools is stark: Sherman's math proficiency is nearly 2.5 times higher than Madison's (46% vs. 18.8%), and the ELA gap is even wider (66.3% vs. roughly 28%).
Several patterns are worth noting for parents. Both schools show a troubling decline in math proficiency from 6th to 8th grade—Madison drops from 31.3% to 13.5%, while Sherman drops from 65.5% to 23.2%—suggesting a district-wide challenge with upper-grade math instruction. Interestingly, Madison Middle School spends $1,802 more per student ($11,002 vs. $9,200) yet performs dramatically worse, indicating that resource allocation matters more than total spending. Sherman's rapid improvement suggests effective interventions are working there, while Madison's inconsistent ELA scores and low performance point to instability. For parents, Sherman is clearly the stronger choice academically, though both schools face challenges in 8th grade math and science that families should be aware of as their children progress through middle school.
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