Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School

Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School is one of the modestly sized 6-8 campuss in Vinton, Iowa, part of Vinton-Shellsburg Comm School District, with 331 students on its rolls from grades 6 through 8.

Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School is one of 4 schools operated by Vinton-Shellsburg Comm School District, a district that instructs 1,558 students overall.

Looking at the student body, Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School lists that the student body is overwhelmingly White (91%); the rest reads as 5% Hispanic, 4% multiracial. That composition is broadly in line with Benton County as a whole.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 23 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 14.4:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 15.2:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Around 52% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Benton County (around 37%), the school's rate is north of typical.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 65.8%; this one delivers 82.0%, a residual of +16.1 points.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for Benton County indicate median household income runs about $86,962, 26% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 4%. In all, Benton County runs 12 public schools (combined enrollment of about 3,919 students), of which Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School is one.

Nearest neighbor: Tilford Elementary School, around 0.4 miles off. Within five miles, there are 2 other public schools. Among the 7 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 77.5%.

Geographically, the school is in a town-center area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Vinton-Shellsburg Middle School has ticked down 8%, going from 358 students in 2018 to 331 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 15.9:1 in 2018 to 14.4:1 today.

Inside the community feed, posts here usually surface around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Members of the school community can share what they know.