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How has MacDonald Middle School changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
857
Middle
DISTRICT 463 · STATE 502
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·EAST LANSING SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 261260004979
MacDonald Middle School
1601 BURCHAM DR, EAST LANSING, MI 48823 · (517) 333-7600 · Ingham County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE13-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL857 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 59% of Michigan public middle schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Michigan public middle schools
Student : Teacher
19.5:1
44 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.4:1 · STATE 17.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
37%
319 students
DISTRICT 36% · STATE 55%
Community
5
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 | 286 | 33% |
| Grade 7 | 271 | 32% |
| Grade 8 | 300 | 35% |
Student demographics
66%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 65% · STATE 56% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
MacDonald Middle School→East Lansing High School
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within East Lansing School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
M-STEP 2024-25 . % Advanced + ProficientEnglish Language Arts
47.3%
MI avg 47.7%
Math
33.6%
MI avg 44.8%
What this means: On the M-STEP, Michigan's statewide test, about 47 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 34 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Michigan schools, those numbers are about 48 and 45.
Source: M-STEP. 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
45.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
49.8%
based on MI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.3pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 46% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 50% typical for Michigan 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 Michigan'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 MacDonald Middle School
MacDonald Middle School's state test result (45.5% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| MacDonald Middle School this school | 857 | 37.2% | 45.5% |
| Holt Junior High School HOLT | 713 | 42.2% | 35.8% |
| Woodhaven Upper Elementary WOODHAVEN | 811 | 38.6% | 39.6% |
| Brownstown Middle School ROMULUS | 872 | 44.0% | 42.3% |
| Portage North Middle School PORTAGE | 609 | 33.8% | 38.4% |
| Grand Blanc Middle School East GRAND BLANC | 884 | 37.7% | 55.8% |
Matched among Michigan 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 MacDonald Middle School ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Michigan | In Ingham County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 45.5% | #156 of 397 | #6 of 12 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 33.6% | #205 of 380 | #6 of 10 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 47.3% | #134 of 377 | #5 of 13 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 857 | #37 of 491 | #1 of 13 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 19.5:1 | #381 of 436 | #10 of 10 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 65.7% | #37 of 437 | #4 of 10 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 37.2% | #304 of 477 | #7 of 13 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +1.8% | #83 of 101 | #7 of 7 |
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
857
-38 (-4%) vs 2020
+76% since 1990-91, when it was 487
Student : Teacher
19.5:1
was 21.3:1
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 | 857 | 43.9 | 19.5:1 | 37% (319) |
| 2023-24 | 842 | 43.3 | 19.4:1 | 38% (316) |
| 2022-23 | 864 | 40.9 | 21.1:1 | 37% (323) |
| 2020-21 | 895 | 42 | 21.3:1 | 38% (344) |
| 2017-18 | 842 | 44.1 | 19.1:1 | 34% (283) |
| 2015-16 | 827 | 38 | 21.8:1 | 32% (263) |
| 2010-11 | 525 | 29 | 18.1:1 | 28% (146) |
| 2000-01 | 548 | 38 | 14.4:1 | 16% (89) |
| 1990-91 | 487 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for MacDonald Middle School.
Since 2017-18: students up 2% (842 to 857); teachers down 1% (44.1 to 43.9).
About MacDonald Middle School
MacDonald Middle School is the name of a large middle-grades school in EAST LANSING, Michigan. A total of 857 students attend the school, which covers grades 6 through 8. Against the 502-student average for middle schools in Michigan, enrollment here is 71% higher.
The district for MacDonald Middle School is East Lansing School District, with 8 schools and 3,702 students.
Roughly 53% of students at MacDonald Middle School are White. Other groups include 18% Black, 13% Hispanic, 11% multiracial, and 4% Asian. By comparison, Ingham County residents are about 69% White. MacDonald Middle School's diversity index is 66%, against a US figure of 70%.
The school's student-to-teacher ratio is about 19.5:1, with 43.9 full-time-equivalent teachers. That is 2.0 students per teacher above the 17.5:1 average for middle schools in Michigan. Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch make up 37% of enrollment. For comparison, public schools in Ingham County average 49%.
Measured against Michigan public middle schools, MacDonald Middle School receives a B. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Compared with Michigan schools that have similar shares of low-income students, MacDonald Middle School's results are 4.3 points below predicted: 45.5% against 49.8%.
Within Ingham County, the median household income is $65,526, 41% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 9% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Besides MacDonald Middle School, Ingham County has 99 other public schools.
Marble School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles away. Within five miles of MacDonald Middle School, there are at least 8 other public schools. Its average proficiency rate of 45.5% is below the 50.8% average for nearby schools.
Locale data from NCES put MacDonald Middle School inside a principal city with a population under 100,000 (City: Small).
Enrollment has fallen by 38 students since 2020-21, to 857. Students per teacher fell from 21.3 in 2020-21 to 19.5 in 2024-25.
Families, students, and staff can use this page to discuss school safety, transportation, and start times at MacDonald Middle School. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Ingham County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
283,913
Census ACS
Median income
$65,526
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
41%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
100
37,914 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in East Lansing School District
- East Lansing High SchoolHigh · 1,231 students
- Marble SchoolElementary · 306 students
- Glencairn SchoolElementary · 298 students
- Whitehills Elementary SchoolElementary · 286 students
- Robert L Green ElementaryElementary · 273 students
- Donley Elementary SchoolElementary · 262 students
Other schools in EAST LANSING
- East Lansing High SchoolHigh · 1,231 students
- Great Lakes Learning Academy MSHSHigh · 760 students
- Marble SchoolElementary · 306 students
- Glencairn SchoolElementary · 298 students
- Whitehills Elementary SchoolElementary · 286 students
- Robert L Green ElementaryElementary · 273 students
Nearby schools
- Marble School0.2 mi · 306
- Donley Elementary School0.9 mi · 262
- East Lansing High School1.0 mi · 1,231
- Whitehills Elementary School1.2 mi · 286
- Project SEARCH1.2 mi · 4
- Great Lakes Learning Academy MSHS1.8 mi · 760
Frequently asked questions
About MacDonald Middle SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at MacDonald Middle School?
MacDonald Middle School enrolls approximately 857 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does MacDonald Middle School serve?
MacDonald Middle School serves grades 06-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at MacDonald Middle School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at MacDonald Middle School is approximately 19.5:1 (44 FTE teachers).
How diverse is MacDonald Middle School?
MacDonald Middle School reports a student body of 53% White, 13% Hispanic, 18% Black, 4% Asian, 11% Two or more.
Who oversees MacDonald Middle School?
MacDonald Middle School is overseen by East Lansing School District in Ingham County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.