John Chavis Middle School

John Chavis Middle School is a compact 6-8 campus in Cherryville, North Carolina, run under Gaston County Schools. The school serves 412 students in grades 6 through 8. Compared to the state average of about 605 students per school, that is 32% smaller than typical.

John Chavis Middle School is one of 56 schools operated by Gaston County Schools, a district that hosts 30,995 students overall.

Looking at the student body, John Chavis Middle School logs that the largest single group is White, at 72% of enrollment; the rest looks like 14% Hispanic, 9% Black, 5% multiracial. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

In terms of school funding signals, The school employs 27 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 15.0:1. The state averages around 15.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 99% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Gaston County (around 85%), the school's rate is meaningfully above typical.

After controlling for student poverty, John Chavis Middle School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 48.5%, the actual is 51.6%, a residual of +3.0 points.

In the area at large, Gaston County reports that the typical household earns roughly $67,478 per year, roughly 27% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 10% of residents live below the federal poverty line. John Chavis Middle School is one of 61 public schools in Gaston County (combined enrollment of about 35,898 students).

Cherryville Elementary is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.5 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 5 other public schools cluster around John Chavis Middle School. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), John Chavis Middle School ranks 4th on composite proficiency, above the local average of 44.2%.

John Chavis Middle School operates from a town-center location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count rose 6%: 390 students in 2018 compared to 412 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 8% to 14% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio widened from 13.1:1 in 2018 to 15.0:1 today.

On allk12, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.