Enrollment
379
Middle
DISTRICT 440 · STATE 400
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SPIRIT LAKE COMM SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 192700001905
Spirit Lake Middle School
609 28th St, Spirit Lake, IA 51360 · (712) 336-1370 · Dickinson County
GRADES 05–08MIDDLE33-TOWNREGULAR SCHOOL379 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
16.0:1
24 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.3:1 · STATE 15.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
28%
108 students
DISTRICT 26% · STATE 41%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Spirit Lake Middle School→Spirit Lake High School
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Spirit Lake Comm School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
ISASP 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
78.3%
IA avg 73.6% . -1.0pp since 2023
Math
78.9%
IA avg 70.9% . -3.3pp since 2023
What this means: On the ISASP, Iowa's statewide test, about 78 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 79 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Iowa schools, those numbers are about 74 and 71. Reading and writing scores are down about 1 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 3 points.
Source: ISASP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
77.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
77.7%
based on IA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-0.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 78% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 78% typical for Iowa schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Iowa's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
379
+26 (+7%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
16.0:1
was 16.4:1
% White
89%
was 90%
% Hispanic
4%
was 3%
% Black
1%
was 1%
% Asian
1%
was 2%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About Spirit Lake Middle School
Spirit Lake Middle School is a mid-sized 6-8 campus in Spirit Lake, Iowa, one of the schools within Spirit Lake Comm School District. The school educates 379 students in grades 5 through 8.
Within Spirit Lake Comm School District, which oversees 3 schools and 1,319 students, Spirit Lake Middle School is one campus in the system.
On the student-mix side, Spirit Lake Middle School records that nearly all students (89%) are White. Other groups include 4% multiracial, 4% Hispanic.
Looking at the economic backdrop, The school lists 24 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 16.0:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 15.2:1 average. An estimated 28% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.
On a demographically-adjusted basis, Spirit Lake Middle School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 77.7%, the actual is 77.7%, a residual of -0.0 points.
In the broader community, census data for Dickinson County shows median household earnings sit near $75,432, 31% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 5%. Across Dickinson County's 9 public schools (combined enrollment of about 3,005 students), Spirit Lake Middle School is one campus in the mix.
The closest other public school is Spirit Lake Elementary School, roughly 0.1 miles away. 2 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Spirit Lake Middle School ranks 4th on composite proficiency, ahead of the local average of 77.0%.
Spirit Lake Middle School operates from a town-center location.
Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Spirit Lake Middle School has increased 7%, going from 353 students in 2018 to 379 in 2025.
On this page, posts here usually surface around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.
Dickinson County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
17,990
Census ACS
Median income
$75,432
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
31%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
9
3,005 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Spirit Lake Comm School District
- Spirit Lake Elementary SchoolElementary · 547 students
- Spirit Lake High SchoolHigh · 393 students
Other schools in Spirit Lake
- Spirit Lake Elementary SchoolElementary · 547 students
- Spirit Lake High SchoolHigh · 393 students
Nearby schools
- Spirit Lake Elementary School0.1 mi · 547
- Spirit Lake High School0.2 mi · 393
- Okoboji Elementary School6.9 mi · 491
- Okoboji High School6.9 mi · 366
- Okoboji Middle School7.1 mi · 339
- Graettinger-Terril Elementary School9.8 mi · 149
Frequently asked questions
About Spirit Lake Middle SchoolHow many students attend Spirit Lake Middle School?
Spirit Lake Middle School enrolls approximately 379 students in grades 05-08.
Is Spirit Lake Middle School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Spirit Lake Middle School is a middle school covering grades 05-08.
How many teachers does Spirit Lake Middle School have?
Spirit Lake Middle School employs 24 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.0:1.
What is the student diversity at Spirit Lake Middle School?
Student demographics at Spirit Lake Middle School are roughly 89% White, 4% Hispanic, 1% Black, 1% Asian, 4% Two or more.
What district is Spirit Lake Middle School in?
Spirit Lake Middle School is part of Spirit Lake Comm School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.