Enrollment
200
Middle
DISTRICT 381 · STATE 605
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MCDOWELL COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370294003353
Foothills Community School
176 Lukin Street, Marion, NC 28752 · (828) 652-1040 · McDowell County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL200 STUDENTS
A+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 96% of North Carolina public middle schools
- ATest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A+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 North Carolina public middle schools
Student : Teacher
18.0:1
11 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.9:1 · STATE 15.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
197 students
DISTRICT 96% · STATE 82%
Community
0
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 | 60 | 30% |
| Grade 7 | 67 | 34% |
| Grade 8 | 73 | 37% |
Student demographics
31%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 41% · STATE 71% · 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
NC EOG / EOC 2024-25 . % Grade Level Proficient (Level 3+)English Language Arts
74.5%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
67.9%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 75 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 68 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all North Carolina schools, those numbers are about 51 and 52.
Source: NC EOG / EOC. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of NC schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
72.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.8%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+23.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 72% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 49% typical for North Carolina schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 23 points, placing it in North Carolina's top 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 Foothills Community School
Foothills Community School's state test result (72.1% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foothills Community School this school | 200 | 98.5% | 72.1% |
| Rosman Middle Rosman | 187 | 98.4% | 55.0% |
| Cane River Middle Burnsville | 210 | 98.1% | 57.2% |
| Piney Grove Middle School Lawsonville | 189 | 98.4% | 63.4% |
| Andrews Middle Andrews | 167 | 97.6% | 51.6% |
| Cranberry Middle Elk Park | 202 | 96.0% | 62.1% |
Matched among North Carolina 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 Foothills Community School ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 72.1% | #42 of 463 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 67.9% | #67 of 461 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 74.5% | #17 of 463 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 200 | #455 of 478 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 18.0:1 | #366 of 456 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 31.3% | #436 of 456 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 98.5% | #277 of 472 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -28.3% | #27 of 300 |
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
200
+2 (+1%) vs 2020
Student : Teacher
18.0:1
was 18.0:1
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 | 200 | 11.1 | 18.0:1 | 99% (197) |
| 2023-24 | 196 | 11.6 | 16.9:1 | 98% (193) |
| 2022-23 | 188 | 12.4 | 15.2:1 | 51% (95) |
| 2020-21 | 198 | 11 | 18.0:1 | 41% (82) |
| 2017-18 | 279 | 14.9 | 18.8:1 | 97% (271) |
| 2015-16 | 78 | 15 | 5.2:1 | 97% (76) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Foothills Community School.
Since 2017-18: students down 28% (279 to 200); teachers down 25% (14.9 to 11.1).
About Foothills Community School
The public middle school Foothills Community School is located in Marion, North Carolina. The school counts 200 students across grades 6 through 8. The school's enrollment is 67% smaller than the 605 average for middle schools in North Carolina.
District-wide, McDowell County Schools has 16 schools and 5,712 students.
White students make up 82% of enrollment at Foothills Community School. Next come 11% Hispanic, 5% multiracial, and 2% Black. The school's diversity index is 31%, meaning two students picked at random have a 31% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Federal data list 11.1 full-time-equivalent teachers at Foothills Community School in 2024-25, for a ratio of 18.0:1. That is higher than the 15.9:1 average for middle schools in North Carolina. The lunch program counts 99% of students at Foothills Community School as eligible for free or reduced-price meals. That tracks the 98% average for public schools in McDowell County.
allk12 grades Foothills Community School an A+. The grade compares the school only with North Carolina public middle schools, because each state gives its own test.
Foothills Community School beats its predicted average proficiency rate on state tests by 23.3 points (72.1% versus 48.8%), a top-10% result in North Carolina on BeatsExpectations.
Across McDowell County, the median household income is $57,168, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 18% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 10%. McDowell County is home to 16 public schools and about 5,712 public school students.
The nearest other public school, The Summit Academy, is about 1.8 miles away. There are at least 8 more public schools inside five miles. Among the 7 closest schools with test data, this one included, Foothills Community School ranks 1st on average proficiency.
Federal records code the school's setting as Town: Distant.
There was little change in enrollment from 2020-21 (198) to 2024-25 (200).
The discussion area below is open to posts about sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
McDowell County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
44,817
Census ACS
Median income
$57,168
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
18%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
16
5,712 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in McDowell County Schools
- McDowell High SchoolHigh · 1,379 students
- West McDowell Middle SchoolMiddle · 550 students
- Glenwood Elementary SchoolElementary · 435 students
- East McDowell Middle SchoolMiddle · 392 students
- West Marion Elementary SchoolElementary · 390 students
- Old Fort Elementary SchoolElementary · 360 students
Other schools in Marion
- McDowell High SchoolHigh · 1,379 students
- West McDowell Middle SchoolMiddle · 550 students
- Glenwood Elementary SchoolElementary · 435 students
- East McDowell Middle SchoolMiddle · 392 students
- West Marion Elementary SchoolElementary · 390 students
- Marion Elementary SchoolElementary · 333 students
Nearby schools
- The Summit Academy1.8 mi · 23
- Marion Elementary School2.5 mi · 333
- McDowell High School2.6 mi · 1,379
- East McDowell Middle School2.6 mi · 392
- McDowell Virtual Academy2.9 mi · 99
- West McDowell Middle School2.9 mi · 550
Frequently asked questions
About Foothills Community SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Foothills Community School?
Foothills Community School enrolls approximately 200 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does Foothills Community School serve?
Foothills Community School serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at Foothills Community School?
Approximately 18.0:1 students per teacher at Foothills Community School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Foothills Community School?
At Foothills Community School, the student body is approximately 82% White, 11% Hispanic, 2% Black, 5% Two or more.
Is Foothills Community School public or private?
Foothills Community School is a public K-12 school, overseen by McDowell County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.