Summary:
Zip code 26205 is home to just one middle school, Richwood Middle School, which serves grades 6 through 8 in Craigsville, WV, with a total enrollment of 228 students.
Richwood Middle School is part of the Nicholas County Schools district, which ranks 24th out of 54 districts in West Virginia. The school has shown improvement in its state ranking over the past three years, moving from 144th to 117th out of roughly 160 middle schools, though it still sits in the bottom third statewide. Overall proficiency rates lag behind both district and state averages: 24.1% of students are proficient in math compared to 39.4% statewide, and 39.6% are proficient in English Language Arts compared to 47.6% statewide. The most striking finding is a dramatic drop in performance between 6th and 7th grade—6th graders achieve 56.6% proficiency in ELA, which is above the state average, but 7th graders plummet to just 25.9%. A similar pattern appears in math, with 6th grade at 34% proficiency falling to 18.5% in 7th grade. This suggests a significant transition challenge or curriculum issue at the 7th-grade level.
Despite these struggles, the school shows genuine strengths in early middle school literacy, with 6th-grade ELA outperforming both district and state averages. The school also has a favorable 13:1 student-teacher ratio and per-student spending of $12,959, yet outcomes remain below average, raising questions about resource deployment. Science scores improved slightly from 16.3% to 20.8% proficiency, though the gap with the state remains. For parents, this school offers a solid foundation in 6th-grade reading but requires attention to math instruction and the 7th-grade experience, where targeted interventions could help close substantial gaps with state averages.
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