Southeast Polk Middle School

As an expansive 6-8 campus in Altoona, Iowa, Southeast Polk Middle School instructs 1,112 students from grades 6 through 7, one of the schools within Southeast Polk Comm School District. That puts it 178% above the typical public school in Iowa, which averages around 400 students.

Within Southeast Polk Comm School District, which oversees 10 schools and 6,359 students, Southeast Polk Middle School is one campus in the system.

On the student-mix side, Southeast Polk Middle School lists that White students make up the majority at 69%. The remainder breaks down as 12% Hispanic, 8% Black, 7% multiracial, 3% Asian.

On the income-and-resources front, The school currently runs with 70 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 15.9:1. The state averages around 15.2:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Around 41% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Polk County (around 49%), the school's rate is noticeably below typical.

With demographic context factored in, Southeast Polk Middle School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 71.4%, the actual is 79.0%, a residual of +7.6 points.

Zooming out to the county, Polk County reports that median household earnings sit near $83,576, about 40% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, Polk County runs 137 public schools (combined enrollment of about 77,436 students), of which Southeast Polk Middle School is one.

The closest other public school is Centennial Elementary, roughly 0.7 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Southeast Polk Middle School at 2nd of 8; the average score across the group is 72.7%.

Geographically, the school is in an outlying area.

Five-year trend. Southeast Polk Middle School's enrollment has expanded 93% since 2018, when it stood at 577 (now 1,112). The White share of enrollment shrank from 83% to 69% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 17.5:1 in 2018 to 15.9:1 today.

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