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What do students at South Marshall Middle actually talk about outside of class?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
432
Middle
DISTRICT 460 · STATE 558
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MARSHALL COUNTY·NCES 210381002428
South Marshall Middle
2211 US 641 South, Benton, KY 42025 · (270) 527-3828 · Marshall County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE41-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL432 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 45% of Kentucky public middle schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Kentucky public middle schools
Student : Teacher
15.8:1
27 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.1:1 · STATE 15.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
61%
263 students
DISTRICT 56% · STATE 63%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 149 | 34% |
| Grade 7 | 131 | 30% |
| Grade 8 | 152 | 35% |
Student demographics
16%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 15% · STATE 47% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
KSA (K-PREP) 2024-25 . % Proficient/DistinguishedEnglish Language Arts
42.7%
KY avg 47.9%
Math
39.7%
KY avg 42.8%
What this means: On the KSA (K-PREP), Kentucky's statewide test, about 43 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 40 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Kentucky schools, those numbers are about 48 and 43.
Source: KSA (K-PREP). 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
38.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
42.4%
based on KY schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.3pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 38% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 42% typical for Kentucky 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 Kentucky'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 →
Schools most like South Marshall Middle
South Marshall Middle's state test result (38.1% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Marshall Middle this school | 432 | 60.9% | 38.1% |
| East Carter Middle School Grayson | 490 | 62.4% | 35.2% |
| Garrard Middle School Lancaster | 543 | 61.0% | 37.3% |
| Green County Middle School Greensburg | 366 | 63.7% | 37.5% |
| Butler County Middle School Morgantown | 461 | 59.4% | 38.2% |
| Johnson County Middle School Paintsville | 449 | 58.8% | 46.9% |
Matched among Kentucky middle schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where South Marshall Middle ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Kentucky |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 38.1% | #123 of 216 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 39.7% | #111 of 216 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 42.7% | #138 of 217 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 432 | #150 of 221 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.8:1 | #95 of 210 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 15.9% | #168 of 210 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 60.9% | #90 of 219 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -21.7% | #32 of 156 |
Ranked against other public middle schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
432
-38 (-8%) vs 2020
Student : Teacher
15.8:1
was 18.1:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 432 | 27.4 | 15.8:1 | 61% (263) |
| 2023-24 | 457 | 29.1 | 15.7:1 | 63% (288) |
| 2022-23 | 462 | 29 | 15.9:1 | 55% (254) |
| 2020-21 | 470 | 26 | 18.1:1 | 55% (258) |
| 2017-18 | 552 | 29.2 | 18.9:1 | 50% (278) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South Marshall Middle.
Since 2017-18: students down 22% (552 to 432); teachers down 6% (29.2 to 27.4).
About South Marshall Middle
South Marshall Middle is a small middle school serving families in Benton, Kentucky. The school teaches grades 6 through 8 and enrolls 432 students. The school is 23% below the average for middle schools in Kentucky.
South Marshall Middle is one school in Marshall County, a system of 11 schools with 4,302 students.
Of every 100 students at South Marshall Middle, about 91 are White. Other students are 6% Hispanic. A diversity index of 16% means there is a 16% chance two randomly chosen students at South Marshall Middle are from different groups.
Staffing at South Marshall Middle comes to 27.4 full-time-equivalent teachers, or 15.8:1. The average ratio among middle schools in Kentucky is similar, at 15.8:1. South Marshall Middle counts 61% of students as eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.
On the allk12 Grade, South Marshall Middle lands at B-, ahead of 45% of Kentucky public middle schools.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, South Marshall Middle is 4.3 points below the average proficiency rate across its state test results predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 38.1% actual, 42.4% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in Kentucky.
For Marshall County, Census Bureau data show the median household earns about $65,831 a year, roughly 21% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 8%. Public schools in Marshall County number 12, with about 4,302 students.
About 2.5 miles separate South Marshall Middle from the closest public school, South Marshall Elementary School. Other public schools within five miles: 3. On average proficiency, South Marshall Middle is 6th of 7 nearby schools with test data.
Under the NCES locale system, South Marshall Middle is Rural: Fringe.
From 470 students in 2020-21, enrollment fell to 432 by 2024-25. Over the same period, the student-to-teacher ratio dropped to 15.8:1, from 18.1:1.
Anyone can start a thread about fundraisers, report cards, and school supplies at South Marshall Middle. Teachers and staff are welcome to share updates too.
Marshall County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
31,743
Census ACS
Median income
$65,831
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
21%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
4,302 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Marshall County
- Marshall County High SchoolHigh · 1,201 students
- Benton Elementary SchoolElementary · 528 students
- North Marshall Middle SchoolMiddle · 487 students
- Central Elementary SchoolElementary · 480 students
- Calvert City Elementary SchoolElementary · 294 students
- Sharpe Elementary SchoolElementary · 276 students
Other schools in Benton
- Marshall County High SchoolHigh · 1,201 students
- Benton Elementary SchoolElementary · 528 students
- Central Elementary SchoolElementary · 480 students
- Sharpe Elementary SchoolElementary · 276 students
- Jonathan Elementary SchoolElementary · 241 students
- South Marshall Elementary SchoolElementary · 241 students
Nearby schools
- South Marshall Elementary School2.5 mi · 241
- Benton Elementary School2.7 mi · 528
- Purchase Youth Village2.9 mi · 22
- MC Academy6.6 mi · 100
- Marshall County High School6.6 mi · 1,201
- Central Elementary School7.4 mi · 480
Frequently asked questions
About South Marshall MiddleWhat is the total enrollment at South Marshall Middle?
South Marshall Middle enrolls approximately 432 students in grades 06-08.
Is South Marshall Middle an elementary, middle, or high school?
South Marshall Middle is a middle school covering grades 06-08.
How many teachers does South Marshall Middle have?
South Marshall Middle employs 27 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 15.8:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at South Marshall Middle?
At South Marshall Middle, the student body is approximately 91% White, 6% Hispanic, 0% Black, 0% Asian, 1% Two or more.
Is South Marshall Middle public or private?
South Marshall Middle is a public K-12 school, overseen by Marshall County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.