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What's the most underrated thing about South St. Paul Middle School that outsiders don't know?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
535
Middle
DISTRICT 409 · STATE 495
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SOUTH ST. PAUL PUBLIC SCHOOL DIST·NCES 273327005313
South St. Paul Middle School
700 2ND ST N, SOUTH SAINT PAUL, MN 55075 · (651) 306-3659 · Dakota County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL535 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 41% of Minnesota 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.
- 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
11.3:1
48 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.3:1 · STATE 17.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
65%
346 students
DISTRICT 66% · 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 | 184 | 34% |
| Grade 7 | 180 | 34% |
| Grade 8 | 171 | 32% |
Student demographics
67%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 67% · 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
Students here typically continue to
South St. Paul Middle School→South St. Paul High School
Based on grade levels within South St. Paul Public School Dist. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
39.0%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
22.4%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 39 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 22 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
29.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
30.3%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.1pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 29% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 30% 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 South St. Paul Middle School
South St. Paul Middle School's state test result (29.2% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South St. Paul Middle School this school | 535 | 64.7% | 29.2% |
| FARIBAULT MIDDLE FARIBAULT | 594 | 69.4% | 19.5% |
| I.J. Holton Intermediate School AUSTIN | 712 | 59.0% | 25.2% |
| Ellis Middle AUSTIN | 726 | 58.3% | 23.2% |
| Southwest Middle ALBERT LEA | 486 | 58.2% | 28.4% |
| Willmar Middle School WILLMAR | 842 | 62.7% | 38.1% |
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 South St. Paul Middle School ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota | In Dakota County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 29.2% | #198 of 245 | #17 of 17 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 22.4% | #203 of 245 | #17 of 17 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 39.0% | #192 of 245 | #16 of 17 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 535 | #139 of 306 | #16 of 20 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.3:1 | #5 of 210 | #1 of 16 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 67.2% | #45 of 216 | #5 of 16 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 64.7% | #43 of 252 | #1 of 17 |
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
535
-197 (-27%) vs 2020
Student : Teacher
11.3:1
was 22.2:1
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 | 535 | 47.5 | 11.3:1 | 65% (346) |
| 2023-24 | 589 | 37.2 | 15.8:1 | 55% (322) |
| 2022-23 | 658 | 33.9 | 19.4:1 | 61% (400) |
| 2020-21 | 732 | 33 | 22.2:1 | 45% (332) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South St. Paul Middle School.
About South St. Paul Middle School
South St. Paul Middle School is a medium-sized middle school in SOUTH SAINT PAUL, Minnesota, administered by South St. Paul Public School Dist. The school's 535 students are in grades 6 through 8.
The district for South St. Paul Middle School is South St. Paul Public School Dist, with 7 schools and 2,861 students.
By race and ethnicity, the largest group at South St. Paul Middle School is White (44%). The remaining students are 35% Hispanic, 10% Black, 8% multiracial, and 4% Asian. Census figures show Dakota County is about 74% White. By the diversity index, South St. Paul Middle School comes in at 67%.
Its 47.5 full-time-equivalent teachers give the school a ratio of 11.3:1. That ratio is under the 17.5:1 average for middle schools in Minnesota. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is 65%. For comparison, public schools in Dakota County average 34%.
South St. Paul Middle School is graded C+ by allk12, scoring above 41% of Minnesota public middle schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
The BeatsExpectations prediction for South St. Paul Middle School is 30.3%, and its average proficiency rate on state tests is 29.2%.
Census estimates describe Dakota County this way: median household income is about $106,318, 45% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 4% of people live in poverty. The public schools of Dakota County number 170 and enroll about 74,687.
The school nearest to South St. Paul Middle School is South St. Paul High School, at a distance of less than a tenth of a mile. Counting only straight-line distance, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles.
NCES describes the area around South St. Paul Middle School as Suburb: Large, meaning in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
South St. Paul Middle School saw enrollment fall 27% between 2020-21 and 2024-25. The school's ratio fell from 22.2:1 to 11.3:1 between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
Discussions about South St. Paul Middle School may include school safety, transportation, and start times. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Dakota County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
445,771
Census ACS
Median income
$106,318
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
45%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
170
74,687 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in South St. Paul Public School Dist
- South St. Paul High SchoolHigh · 866 students
- Lincoln Center ElementaryElementary · 670 students
- Kaposia Education Center ElementaryElementary · 620 students
- S St. Paul Community Lrng. Cntr.High · 99 students
- Early Childhood Special Ed ProgramElementary · 68 students
- SSP VirtualHigh · 3 students
Other schools in SOUTH SAINT PAUL
- South St. Paul High SchoolHigh · 866 students
- Lincoln Center ElementaryElementary · 670 students
- Kaposia Education Center ElementaryElementary · 620 students
- S St. Paul Community Lrng. Cntr.High · 99 students
- Early Childhood Special Ed ProgramElementary · 68 students
- 917 Deaf/Hard of HearingCombined · 29 students
Nearby schools
- South St. Paul High School0.0 mi · 866
- Early Childhood Special Ed Program0.2 mi · 68
- 917 Deaf/Hard of Hearing0.3 mi · 29
- Lincoln Center Elementary0.3 mi · 670
- SSP Virtual1.0 mi · 3
- S St. Paul Community Lrng. Cntr.1.0 mi · 99
Frequently asked questions
About South St. Paul Middle SchoolHow many students attend South St. Paul Middle School?
South St. Paul Middle School enrolls approximately 535 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does South St. Paul Middle School serve?
South St. Paul Middle School serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at South St. Paul Middle School?
Approximately 11.3:1 students per teacher at South St. Paul Middle School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at South St. Paul Middle School?
At South St. Paul Middle School, the student body is approximately 44% White, 35% Hispanic, 10% Black, 4% Asian, 8% Two or more.
What district is South St. Paul Middle School in?
South St. Paul Middle School is part of South St. Paul Public School Dist.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.