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What's one community event at Discovery Middle School more people should show up to?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
898
Middle
DISTRICT 403 · STATE 495
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ALEXANDRIA PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 270306000083
Discovery Middle School
510 N MCKAY AVE, ALEXANDRIA, MN 56308 · (320) 762-7900 · Douglas County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE33-TOWNREGULAR SCHOOL898 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 77% of Minnesota public middle schools
- A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats 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 Minnesota public middle schools
Student : Teacher
15.9:1
57 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.2:1 · STATE 17.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
28%
252 students
DISTRICT 31% · STATE 48%
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 | 288 | 32% |
| Grade 7 | 301 | 34% |
| Grade 8 | 309 | 34% |
Student demographics
24%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 21% · STATE 60% · 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
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Alexandria Public School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
53.1%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
51.7%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 53 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 52 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Minnesota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 45.
Source: MCA. 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
48.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
50.0%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.2pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 49% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 50% typical for Minnesota 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 Minnesota'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 Discovery Middle School
Discovery Middle School's state test result (48.8% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery Middle School this school | 898 | 28.1% | 48.8% |
| Princeton Middle School PRINCETON | 740 | 29.7% | 40.4% |
| BUFFALO COMMUNITY MIDDLE BUFFALO | 1,160 | 27.5% | 45.7% |
| Hastings Middle School HASTINGS | 1,183 | 27.6% | 37.5% |
| Chisago Lakes Middle LINDSTROM | 742 | 24.9% | 53.5% |
| Monticello Middle MONTICELLO | 860 | 28.8% | 44.3% |
Matched among Minnesota 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 Discovery Middle School ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 48.8% | #63 of 245 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 51.7% | #65 of 245 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 53.1% | #95 of 245 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 898 | #55 of 306 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.9:1 | #74 of 210 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 23.7% | #172 of 216 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 28.1% | #173 of 252 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -10.2% | #75 of 129 |
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
898
-88 (-9%) vs 2020
-3% since 1990-91, when it was 930
Student : Teacher
15.9:1
was 23.5:1
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 | 898 | 56.6 | 15.9:1 | 28% (252) |
| 2023-24 | 874 | 58.3 | 15.0:1 | 35% (302) |
| 2022-23 | 913 | 60.2 | 15.2:1 | 35% (315) |
| 2020-21 | 986 | 42 | 23.5:1 | 23% (222) |
| 2017-18 | 1,000 | 55.6 | 18.0:1 | 30% (300) |
| 2015-16 | 930 | 53 | 17.6:1 | 28% (263) |
| 2010-11 | 850 | 57 | 14.9:1 | 28% (236) |
| 2000-01 | 1,053 | 63 | 16.7:1 | 21% (226) |
| 1990-91 | 930 | 55 | 16.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Discovery Middle School.
Since 2017-18: students down 10% (1,000 to 898); teachers up 2% (55.6 to 56.6).
About Discovery Middle School
Discovery Middle School is a high-enrollment middle school in ALEXANDRIA, Minnesota, (ZIP code 56308). Students in grades 6 through 8 attend the school, which enrolls 898 students. The average among middle schools in Minnesota is roughly 495 students; this school is 81% bigger than that.
Enrollment across the 10 schools in Alexandria Public School District totals 4,034 students.
Discovery Middle School's enrollment is 87% White. After that, the student body is 6% Hispanic and 5% multiracial. The school's diversity index is 24%, meaning two students picked at random have a 24% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
The teaching staff at Discovery Middle School is 56.6 full-time-equivalent teachers, and the ratio is 15.9:1. The school has fewer students per teacher than the 17.5:1 average for middle schools in Minnesota. About 28% of students, or 252, qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. That tracks the 31% average for public schools in Douglas County.
Measured against Minnesota public middle schools, Discovery Middle School receives an A-. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Test results at Discovery Middle School are 1.2 points below what its free or reduced-price lunch share predicts (48.8% actual, 50.0% predicted).
Census estimates describe Douglas County this way: the median household income is $79,043, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 30% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 5%. In all, Douglas County has 22 public schools and roughly 5,781 students.
Runestone Alternative School is located about 0.6 miles from Discovery Middle School. The five-mile area around Discovery Middle School holds at least 8 other public schools. The nearest schools with test data average 46.1%, lower than Discovery Middle School's 48.8%.
Federal data place Discovery Middle School in the Town: Remote locale, which means it is in a town far from an urbanized area.
Discovery Middle School's enrollment dropped from 986 in 2020-21 to 898 in 2024-25. In 2020-21, the student-to-teacher ratio was 23.5:1; by 2024-25 it was 15.9:1.
The allk12 site hosts a discussion page for Discovery Middle School covering things like sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Douglas County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
39,575
Census ACS
Median income
$79,043
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
30%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
22
5,781 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Alexandria Public School District
- Alexandria Area High SchoolHigh · 1,315 students
- Lincoln ElementaryElementary · 481 students
- Voyager ElementaryElementary · 446 students
- Woodland Elementary SchoolElementary · 410 students
- Miltona ElementaryElementary · 126 students
- Garfield ElementaryElementary · 117 students
Other schools in ALEXANDRIA
- Alexandria Area High SchoolHigh · 1,315 students
- Lincoln ElementaryElementary · 481 students
- Voyager ElementaryElementary · 446 students
- Woodland Elementary SchoolElementary · 410 students
- Kalon Prep AcademyHigh · 141 students
- Early Education CenterElementary · 114 students
Other Discovery Middle schools
7 other US public schools in 8 states are named Discovery Middle. Discovery Middle School is the 4th largest of the 8.
- Discovery Middle SchoolMadison, AL · 1,054 students
- DISCOVERY MIDDLE SCHOOLFargo, ND · 992 students
- Discovery Middle SchoolGranger, IN · 941 students
- DISCOVERY MIDDLEORLANDO, FL · 814 students
- Discovery Middle SchoolCANTON, MI · 731 students
Nearby schools
- Runestone Alternative School0.6 mi · 22
- Voyager Elementary1.3 mi · 446
- Early Education Center1.4 mi · 114
- Woodland Elementary School1.4 mi · 410
- Lakes Country Academy - ALEX1.9 mi · 7
- Lincoln Elementary2.1 mi · 481
Frequently asked questions
About Discovery Middle SchoolHow many students attend Discovery Middle School?
Discovery Middle School enrolls approximately 898 students in grades 06-08.
Is Discovery Middle School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Discovery Middle School is a middle school covering grades 06-08.
How many teachers does Discovery Middle School have?
Discovery Middle School employs 57 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 15.9:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Discovery Middle School?
At Discovery Middle School, the student body is approximately 87% White, 6% Hispanic, 1% Black, 1% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Who oversees Discovery Middle School?
Discovery Middle School is overseen by Alexandria Public School District in Douglas County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.