Summary:
The Columbia 93 school district in Missouri is home to 7 middle schools, serving students in grades 6-8. These schools vary significantly in their academic performance, with some standouts like John Warner Middle School and Jefferson Middle School ranking among the top middle schools in the state, while others like Oakland Middle School and John B. Lange Middle struggle with lower academic outcomes.
The top-performing schools in the district, such as John Warner Middle and Jefferson Middle, consistently achieve high test scores and rankings, with John Warner Middle ranking 10th out of 451 middle schools in the state. These schools also have significantly higher spending per student, with Ann Hawkins Gentry Middle School spending over $20,000 per student compared to just $6,602 per student at John Warner Middle. However, the district as a whole faces challenges, including a chronic absenteeism rate of 24.3%, which is higher than the state average.
Across the district, there are significant disparities in student performance, with the highest-performing schools vastly outpacing the lower-performing ones. For example, in 8th-grade math, the proficiency rate at John Warner Middle (58.3%) is over 10 times higher than at West Middle School (5.1%). These performance gaps may be linked to differences in socioeconomic status and funding levels, underscoring the need for the Columbia 93 district to address equity and resource disparities among its middle schools.
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