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Teachers: what resource would make the biggest difference at L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL this year?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
753
Middle
DISTRICT 755 · STATE 464
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·FORT SMITH SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 050633000358
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL
3025 MASSARD RD, FORT SMITH, AR 72903 · (479) 452-2226 · Sebastian County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL753 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.9:1
54 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.8:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
55%
417 students
DISTRICT 78% · STATE 70%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 273 | 36% |
| Grade 7 | 239 | 32% |
| Grade 8 | 241 | 32% |
Student demographics
64%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 71% · STATE 61% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
ATLAS 2024-25 . % Proficient (Level 3+4)English Language Arts
47.7%
AR avg 34.9% . -5.3pp since 2023
Math
54.9%
AR avg 38.9% . +0.0pp since 2023
What this means: On the ATLAS, Arkansas's statewide test, about 48 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 55 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Arkansas schools, those numbers are about 35 and 39. Reading and writing scores are down about 5 points since 2023, while math scores have held steady.
ATLAS results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 47.7% | 54.9% |
| 2023-24 | 53.0% | 54.9% |
% Proficient (Level 3+4), all students and all tested grades.
Source: ATLAS. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of AR schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
54.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
39.2%
based on AR schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+15.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 55% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 39% typical for Arkansas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 16 points, placing it in Arkansas's top 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL's state test result (54.8% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL this school | 753 | 55.4% | 54.8% |
| GENTRY MIDDLE SCHOOL GENTRY | 425 | 55.1% | 34.8% |
| RAMSEY MIDDLE SCHOOL FORT SMITH | 801 | 68.0% | 37.2% |
| JOE T. ROBINSON MIDDLE SCHOOL LITTLE ROCK | 607 | 47.0% | 50.4% |
| HOLT MIDDLE SCHOOL FAYETTEVILLE | 463 | 51.6% | 46.7% |
| NORTHRIDGE MIDDLE SCHOOL VAN BUREN | 713 | 51.3% | 47.5% |
Matched among Arkansas middle schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Arkansas | In Sebastian County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 54.8% | #18 of 207 | #2 of 7 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 54.9% | #27 of 208 ▼ 1 | #2 of 7 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 47.7% | #31 of 208 ▼ 21 | #3 of 7 ▼ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 753 | #25 of 217 | #2 of 7 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.9:1 | #89 of 188 | #3 of 7 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 63.8% | #28 of 188 | #3 of 7 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 55.4% | #139 of 210 | #4 of 7 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -4.8% | #99 of 114 | N/A |
Ranked against other public middle schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
753
-110 (-13%) vs 2020
-5% since 1990-91, when it was 795
Student : Teacher
13.9:1
was 13.3:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 753 | 54 | 13.9:1 | 55% (417) |
| 2023-24 | 691 | 52.3 | 13.2:1 | 56% (387) |
| 2022-23 | 725 | 52.3 | 13.9:1 | 54% (389) |
| 2020-21 | 863 | 65 | 13.3:1 | 53% (455) |
| 2017-18 | 791 | 56.8 | 13.9:1 | 26% (207) |
| 2015-16 | 835 | 54 | 15.5:1 | 46% (380) |
| 2010-11 | 819 | 49 | 16.7:1 | 41% (338) |
| 2000-01 | 705 | 55 | 12.8:1 | 17% (117) |
| 1990-91 | 795 | 44 | 18.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL.
About L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL is a large middle school in Arkansas, with an address in FORT SMITH. The school offers grades 6 through 8 and enrolls 753 students. Across middle schools in Arkansas, the average enrollment is about 464.
FORT SMITH SCHOOL DISTRICT is responsible for 27 schools, L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL included, with 14,164 students in all.
At L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL, 55% of students are White. The remaining students are 17% Hispanic, 15% multiracial, 7% Asian, and 5% Black. Census figures show Sebastian County is about 68% White. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL scores 64%.
There are about 13.9 students for every full-time-equivalent teacher at L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL, which has 54. The ratio is within a point of the 13.9:1 average for middle schools in Arkansas. Eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch stands at 55%. The rate at public schools in Sebastian County averages 65%, higher than here.
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL is 15.6 points above expectations on state tests, given its student poverty level, placing it in the top 10% in Arkansas.
In Sebastian County, where the school is located, the median household earns about $57,790 a year, 23% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 11% of people live in poverty. Counting L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL, Sebastian County has 44 public schools.
JOHN P. WOODS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is the nearest public school to L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL, less than a tenth of a mile away. L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL is one of several public schools in the area, with at least 8 others within five miles. Nearby schools with test data average 39.3% proficiency; L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL posts 54.8%.
NCES lists the school's locale as City: Small. That means it sits inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
Enrollment decreased by 13% across 4 years, from 863 in 2020-21 to 753 in 2024-25.
The L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL discussion page is a place for special education services, counseling, and support programs. Teachers and staff are welcome to share updates too.
Sebastian County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
128,900
Census ACS
Median income
$57,790
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
23%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
44
20,239 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in FORT SMITH SCHOOL DISTRICT
- NORTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,231 students
- SOUTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,053 students
- RAMSEY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 801 students
- DORA KIMMONS MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 753 students
- WILLIAM O. DARBY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 711 students
- FAIRVIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 582 students
Other schools in FORT SMITH
- NORTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,231 students
- SOUTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,053 students
- RAMSEY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 801 students
- DORA KIMMONS MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 753 students
- WILLIAM O. DARBY MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 711 students
- FAIRVIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 582 students
Nearby schools
- JOHN P. WOODS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.1 mi · 514
- EUPER LANE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL1.4 mi · 397
- BONNEVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL2.0 mi · 287
- FORT SMITH VIRTUAL ACADEMY2.1 mi · 106
- BARLING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL2.2 mi · 316
- SOUTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOL2.8 mi · 2,053
Frequently asked questions
About L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOLWhat is the total enrollment at L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL?
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL enrolls approximately 753 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL serve?
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL serves grades 06-08.
How many teachers does L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL have?
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL employs 54 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.9:1.
What is the student diversity at L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL?
Student demographics at L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL are roughly 55% White, 17% Hispanic, 5% Black, 7% Asian, 15% Two or more.
Is L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL public or private?
L. A. CHAFFIN MIDDLE SCHOOL is a public K-12 school, overseen by FORT SMITH SCHOOL DISTRICT.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.