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Parents: what's one thing you'd want the WALDEN MIDDLE administration to hear?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
730
Middle
DISTRICT 664 · STATE 461
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PARK HILL·NCES 292355003359
WALDEN MIDDLE
4701 NW 56TH STREET, KANSAS CITY, MO 64151 · (816) 359-4240 · Platte County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE11-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL730 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 58% of Missouri public middle schools
- B+Test 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.
- C-Three-year trend Change in reading and math proficiency over the last three test years.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Missouri public middle schools
Student : Teacher
13.0:1
56 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.2:1 · STATE 13.0:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
30%
220 students
DISTRICT 30% · STATE 54%
Community
1
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 | 230 | 32% |
| Grade 7 | 250 | 34% |
| Grade 8 | 250 | 34% |
Student demographics
59%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · STATE 52% · 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
MAP 2024-25 . % Proficient + AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
47.3%
MO avg 44.9% . -0.8pp since 2021
Math
50.6%
MO avg 43.8% . -1.9pp since 2021
What this means: On the MAP, Missouri's statewide test, about 47 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 51 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Missouri schools, those numbers are about 45 and 44. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2021, while math scores are down about 2 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Advanced | Proficient | Basic | Below Basic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 22.1% | 25.2% | 37.1% | 15.3% |
| Math | 23.2% | 27.4% | 32.7% | 16.5% |
Share of tested students at each MAP level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.
MAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 47.3% | 50.6% |
| 2023-24 | 46.7% | 48.6% |
| 2022-23 | 47.9% | 46.0% |
| 2021-22 | 48.1% | 52.5% |
% Proficient + Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: MAP. 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
49.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.6%
based on MO schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+0.4pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 49% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% typical for Missouri 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 Missouri'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 WALDEN MIDDLE
WALDEN MIDDLE's state test result (49.0% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| WALDEN MIDDLE this school | 730 | 30.1% | 49.0% |
| CONGRESS MIDDLE KANSAS CITY | 601 | 30.9% | 41.8% |
| PLAZA MIDDLE KANSAS CITY | 673 | 34.6% | 41.2% |
| MORELAND RIDGE MIDDLE BLUE SPRINGS | 813 | 31.0% | 51.9% |
| PLEASANT LEA MIDDLE LEE'S SUMMIT | 905 | 29.0% | 50.2% |
| HOLLENBECK MIDDLE ST CHARLES | 769 | 25.5% | 52.8% |
Matched among Missouri 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 WALDEN MIDDLE ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Missouri | In Platte County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #107 of 379 | #4 of 8 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 50.6% | #131 of 380 ▲ 2 | #5 of 8 ▼ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 47.3% | #117 of 380 ▼ 13 | #5 of 8 no change |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -1.3pp | #98 of 364 | #4 of 7 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 730 | #68 of 397 | #1 of 8 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.0:1 | #143 of 321 | #5 of 6 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 58.9% | #55 of 321 | #3 of 6 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 30.1% | #304 of 379 | #4 of 8 |
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
730
-3 (0%) vs 2020
Student : Teacher
13.0:1
was 15.0:1
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 | 730 | 56.1 | 13.0:1 | 30% (220) |
| 2023-24 | 745 | 55.6 | 13.4:1 | 30% (225) |
| 2022-23 | 747 | 53.4 | 14.0:1 | 32% (236) |
| 2020-21 | 733 | 49 | 15.0:1 | 34% (247) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for WALDEN MIDDLE.
About WALDEN MIDDLE
This page covers WALDEN MIDDLE, a large middle-grades school in KANSAS CITY, Missouri. The school teaches grades 6 through 8 and enrolls 730 students. The school is 58% larger than the average for middle schools in Missouri.
The PARK HILL system has 18 schools and 11,937 students.
More than half of the students at WALDEN MIDDLE are White (61%). The remaining shares are 14% Black, 13% Hispanic, 8% multiracial, and 3% Asian. Census estimates put the White share of Platte County's population at about 79%. The diversity index for WALDEN MIDDLE is 59%. For US public schools as a whole it is 70%.
The student-to-teacher ratio at WALDEN MIDDLE is 13.0:1, based on 56.1 full-time-equivalent teachers. It is about the same as the 13.0:1 average for middle schools in Missouri. WALDEN MIDDLE counts 30% of students as eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That is in line with the 27% average for public schools in Platte County.
WALDEN MIDDLE earns a B on the allk12 Grade, which blends test scores, results against poverty-based expectations, and the three-year trend. It scored higher than 58% of Missouri public middle schools.
Schools in Missouri with a similar free or reduced-price lunch share are predicted to score about 48.6%. WALDEN MIDDLE scores 49.0%.
Five-year Census Bureau estimates for Platte County show that the median household earns about $96,227 a year, about 47% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 5%. Platte County has 37 public schools with about 17,612 students, including WALDEN MIDDLE.
WALDEN MIDDLE is about 0.2 miles from SOUTHEAST ELEM., its nearest public school. Around the school, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Among its closest neighbors with test data, WALDEN MIDDLE is 3rd of 9 on proficiency.
WALDEN MIDDLE is inside a principal city with a population of 250,000 or more, a location NCES labels City: Large.
Over 4 years, enrollment stayed close to where it was, going from 733 to 730. From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the ratio dropped from 15.0:1 to 13.0:1.
The WALDEN MIDDLE discussion page is a place for homework, tutoring, and testing dates. You can also rate the school on this page.
Platte County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
110,371
Census ACS
Median income
$96,227
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
47%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
37
17,612 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in PARK HILL
- PARK HILL HIGHHigh · 1,947 students
- PARK HILL SOUTH HIGHHigh · 1,890 students
- PLAZA MIDDLEMiddle · 673 students
- LAKEVIEW MIDDLEMiddle · 653 students
- UNION CHAPEL ELEM.Elementary · 609 students
- CONGRESS MIDDLEMiddle · 601 students
Other schools in KANSAS CITY
- STALEY HIGHHigh · 2,091 students
- PARK HILL HIGHHigh · 1,947 students
- OAK PARK HIGHHigh · 1,755 students
- NORTH KANSAS CITY HIGHHigh · 1,719 students
- RUSKIN HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,299 students
- WINNETONKA HIGHHigh · 1,238 students
Nearby schools
- SOUTHEAST ELEM.0.2 mi · 548
- PARK HILL SOUTH HIGH1.4 mi · 1,890
- LINE CREEK ELEM.1.5 mi · 321
- LAKEVIEW MIDDLE1.8 mi · 653
- ENGLISH LANDING ELEM.1.8 mi · 435
- WEST ENGLEWOOD ELEMENTARY1.9 mi · 435
Frequently asked questions
About WALDEN MIDDLEHow large is WALDEN MIDDLE?
WALDEN MIDDLE enrolls approximately 730 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does WALDEN MIDDLE serve?
WALDEN MIDDLE serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
How many teachers does WALDEN MIDDLE have?
WALDEN MIDDLE employs 56 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.0:1.
How diverse is WALDEN MIDDLE?
WALDEN MIDDLE reports a student body of 61% White, 13% Hispanic, 14% Black, 3% Asian, 8% Two or more.
What district is WALDEN MIDDLE in?
WALDEN MIDDLE is part of PARK HILL.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.