Dean Rusk Middle School

Dean Rusk Middle School is a middle-grades school of substantial scale in Canton, Georgia, operated by Cherokee County, hosting 1,543 students in grades 6 through 8. Compared to the state average of about 763 students per school, that is 102% above typical.

Cherokee County runs 37 schools in total, collectively educating 42,031 students. Dean Rusk Middle School is one of those campuses.

On the student-mix side, Dean Rusk Middle School lists that 65% of the student body identifies as White. Other groups include 18% Hispanic, 7% Black, 6% multiracial, 4% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 76% White, putting the school's mix meaningfully less White than the area baseline.

On the resource side, On paper, Dean Rusk Middle School has 93 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 16.7:1. The state averages around 14.1:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. About 30% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Dean Rusk Middle School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 61.7%; this one delivers 58.6%.

Zooming out to the county, Cherokee County reports that median household earnings sit near $108,115, 41% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 6%. In all, Cherokee County runs 38 public schools (combined enrollment of about 42,642 students), of which Dean Rusk Middle School is one.

The closest other public school is Hickory Flat Elementary School, roughly 0.2 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Dean Rusk Middle School. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Dean Rusk Middle School ranks 5th on composite proficiency, beneath the local average of 59.3%.

Geographically, the school is in an outer-ring area.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Dean Rusk Middle School has held roughly steady, going from 1,520 students in 2018 to 1,543 in 2025. The White share of enrollment contracted from 75% to 65% over that span.

Within the allk12 community for this school, members of the Dean Rusk Middle School community share and discuss enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.