Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School

Located at 400 Metcalf St., in Maxwell, Iowa, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School is a modestly sized high school that caters to 190 students (grades 6 through 12), one of the schools within Collins-Maxwell Comm School District. By comparison, Iowa's public schools average about 468 students each, so Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School sits 59% leaner than that benchmark.

Within Collins-Maxwell Comm School District, which oversees 2 schools and 372 students, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School is one campus in the system.

On demographics, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School reports that nearly all students (91%) are White; the rest looks like 5% Hispanic, 2% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 82% White, putting the school's mix visibly more White than the area baseline.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School has 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 10.6:1. The state averages around 17.3:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 35% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy.

With demographic context factored in, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 74.3%; this one delivers 71.8%.

In the surrounding community, the surrounding county (Story County) records that the typical household earns roughly $69,685 per year, about 55% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 6%. Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School is one of 26 public schools in Story County (combined enrollment of about 11,665 students).

Nearest neighbor: Collins-Maxwell Elementary School, around 4.9 miles off. 6 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a ten-mile radius, suggesting a relatively low-density school footprint. On composite proficiency, Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School comes 8th of 9 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 78.9%.

Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School operates from a countryside location.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Collins-Maxwell Middle/High School has declined 15%, going from 223 students in 2018 to 190 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, posts here usually surface around science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.