1
Does Owen Middle have enough mental health and stress support?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
457
Middle
DISTRICT 556 · STATE 605
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·BUNCOMBE COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370045002286
Owen Middle
730 Old US 70, Swannanoa, NC 28778 · (828) 686-7739 · Buncombe County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL457 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 31% of North Carolina public middle schools
- CTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats 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
13.7:1
33 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.0:1 · STATE 15.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
97%
442 students
DISTRICT 96% · STATE 82%
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 | 159 | 35% |
| Grade 7 | 152 | 33% |
| Grade 8 | 146 | 32% |
Student demographics
44%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 54% · 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
42.1%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
36.6%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 37 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
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
42.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
49.3%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-6.9pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 42% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% typical for North Carolina 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 North Carolina'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 Owen Middle
Owen Middle's state test result (42.4% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owen Middle this school | 457 | 96.7% | 42.4% |
| Brevard Middle Brevard | 472 | 99.4% | 54.5% |
| North Windy Ridge Intermediate Weaverville | 487 | 98.2% | 64.3% |
| Chase Middle School Forest City | 484 | 97.1% | 58.3% |
| West Wilkes Middle School Wilkesboro | 450 | 99.3% | 51.2% |
| East Alexander Middle Hiddenite | 510 | 98.8% | 53.5% |
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 Owen Middle ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Buncombe County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 42.4% | #328 of 463 | #10 of 12 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 36.6% | #349 of 461 | #10 of 12 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 42.1% | #314 of 463 | #9 of 12 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 457 | #339 of 478 | #12 of 13 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.7:1 | #59 of 456 | #3 of 13 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 44.3% | #390 of 456 | #10 of 13 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 96.7% | #338 of 472 | #11 of 13 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -12.8% | #141 of 300 | #5 of 11 |
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
457
-8 (-2%) vs 2020
-36% since 2000-01, when it was 718
Student : Teacher
13.7:1
was 12.2:1
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 | 457 | 33.3 | 13.7:1 | 97% (442) |
| 2023-24 | 435 | 34.2 | 12.7:1 | 99% (432) |
| 2022-23 | 418 | 36.1 | 11.6:1 | 62% (261) |
| 2020-21 | 465 | 38 | 12.2:1 | 42% (194) |
| 2017-18 | 524 | 38.8 | 13.5:1 | 56% (293) |
| 2015-16 | 547 | 42 | 13.0:1 | 59% (324) |
| 2010-11 | 604 | 44 | 13.7:1 | 56% (337) |
| 2000-01 | 718 | 58 | 12.4:1 | 32% (228) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Owen Middle.
Since 2017-18: students down 13% (524 to 457); teachers down 14% (38.8 to 33.3).
About Owen Middle
Owen Middle, located in Swannanoa, North Carolina, is a small middle school. It reported 457 students in grades 6 through 8 in 2024-25. That compares with an average of about 605 students for middle schools in North Carolina.
Owen Middle reports to Buncombe County Schools, which has 45 schools and 22,452 students.
At Owen Middle, 72% of students are White. The remaining students are 19% Hispanic, 5% multiracial, and 3% Black. Census figures show Buncombe County is about 82% White. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 44%.
Owen Middle has a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.7:1, with 33.3 full-time-equivalent teachers. Statewide, middle schools in North Carolina average 15.9:1. The school has 97% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Public schools in Buncombe County average 88%.
Among North Carolina public middle schools, Owen Middle outscored 31%, which works out to a C on the allk12 Grade.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Owen Middle is 6.9 points below the average proficiency rate across its state test results predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 42.4% actual, 49.3% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in North Carolina.
Looking at the county, Buncombe County, median household income comes to about $74,436, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 46% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 6%. The county has 61 public schools and about 29,908 students.
Owen Middle's nearest public school is Owen High (about 0.8 miles). There are 6 more public schools inside five miles. Owen Middle places 6th of 7 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
Owen Middle has an NCES locale of Suburb: Large.
Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, enrollment moved from 465 to 457, a small change. Staffing shifted too: the ratio moved from 12.2:1 to 13.7:1.
People can post here about special education services, counseling, and support programs and other school topics. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Buncombe County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
274,360
Census ACS
Median income
$74,436
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
46%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
61
29,908 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Buncombe County Schools
- Roberson HighHigh · 1,479 students
- Reynolds HighHigh · 1,169 students
- Enka HighHigh · 1,051 students
- Erwin HighHigh · 1,013 students
- North Buncombe HighHigh · 896 students
- Estes ElementaryElementary · 754 students
Other schools in Swannanoa
- Williams ElementaryElementary · 451 students
- ArtSpace Charter SchoolElementary · 402 students
- Community High SchoolHigh · 127 students
Nearby schools
- Owen High0.8 mi · 649
- Williams Elementary1.6 mi · 451
- Community High School1.7 mi · 127
- ArtSpace Charter School3.1 mi · 402
- Black Mountain Primary3.3 mi · 351
- Black Mountain Elementary3.6 mi · 163
Frequently asked questions
About Owen MiddleHow large is Owen Middle?
Owen Middle enrolls approximately 457 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does Owen Middle serve?
Owen Middle serves grades 06-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Owen Middle?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Owen Middle is approximately 13.7:1 (33 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Owen Middle?
At Owen Middle, the student body is approximately 72% White, 19% Hispanic, 3% Black, 1% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Who oversees Owen Middle?
Owen Middle is overseen by Buncombe County Schools in Buncombe County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.