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Teachers: what resource would make the biggest difference at Valley Springs Middle this year?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
654
Middle
DISTRICT 556 · STATE 605
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·BUNCOMBE COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370045000165
Valley Springs Middle
224 Long Shoals Road, Arden, NC 28704 · (828) 654-1785 · Buncombe County
GRADES 05–08MIDDLE13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL654 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 80% of North Carolina 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.
- ABeats 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
14.3:1
46 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.0:1 · STATE 15.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
100%
651 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 5 | 6 | 1% |
| Grade 6 | 5 | 1% |
| Grade 7 | 318 | 49% |
| Grade 8 | 325 | 50% |
Student demographics
65%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
53.6%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
60.0%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 54 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 60 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
58.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.4%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+10.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 59% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 48% 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 Valley Springs Middle
Valley Springs Middle's state test result (58.7% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valley Springs Middle this school | 654 | 99.5% | 58.7% |
| Emma B Trask Middle Wilmington | 611 | 99.5% | 58.6% |
| Shallotte Middle Shallotte | 627 | 99.5% | 60.0% |
| Kernersville Middle Kernersville | 754 | 98.9% | 55.5% |
| Koontz Intermediate Asheville | 725 | 99.2% | 53.6% |
| Central Wilkes Middle School Moravian Falls | 564 | 99.5% | 57.9% |
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 Valley Springs Middle ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Buncombe County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 58.7% | #138 of 463 | #4 of 12 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 60.0% | #129 of 461 | #4 of 12 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 53.6% | #170 of 463 | #5 of 12 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 654 | #185 of 478 | #3 of 13 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.3:1 | #84 of 456 | #5 of 13 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 64.8% | #183 of 456 | #2 of 13 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.5% | #69 of 472 | #1 of 13 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +9.0% | #75 of 143 | N/A |
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
654
-10 (-2%) vs 2020
-24% since 1990-91, when it was 857
Student : Teacher
14.3:1
was 13.8:1
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 | 654 | 45.7 | 14.3:1 | 100% (651) |
| 2023-24 | 634 | 50.4 | 12.6:1 | 100% (631) |
| 2022-23 | 634 | 51.1 | 12.4:1 | 53% (333) |
| 2020-21 | 664 | 48 | 13.8:1 | 38% (251) |
| 2017-18 | 600 | 43.4 | 13.8:1 | 45% (268) |
| 2015-16 | 618 | 46 | 13.4:1 | 52% (320) |
| 2010-11 | 780 | 57 | 13.7:1 | 43% (332) |
| 2000-01 | 774 | 69 | 11.2:1 | 27% (209) |
| 1990-91 | 857 | 50 | 17.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Valley Springs Middle.
Since 2017-18: students up 9% (600 to 654); teachers up 5% (43.4 to 45.7).
About Valley Springs Middle
In Arden, North Carolina, part of Buncombe County, Valley Springs Middle is a middle school. In all, 654 students attend the school in grades 5 through 8.
Valley Springs Middle is one of the 45 schools that make up Buncombe County Schools (22,452 students in total).
The largest group at Valley Springs Middle is White students, at 51%. Other groups make up 27% Hispanic, 11% Black, 7% multiracial, and 3% Asian. County-wide, 82% of Buncombe County residents are White. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 65%.
The school has 45.7 full-time-equivalent teachers and a ratio of 14.3 students per teacher. The average for middle schools in North Carolina is 15.9:1, so this school has fewer students per teacher. The school reported 100% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024-25. For comparison, public schools in Buncombe County average 88%.
Among North Carolina public middle schools, Valley Springs Middle outscored 80%, which works out to an A- on the allk12 Grade.
In North Carolina, Valley Springs Middle is in the middle band of BeatsExpectations: 58.7% actual against a predicted 48.4%.
American Community Survey estimates for Buncombe County show that the median household earns about $74,436 a year, about 46% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 6%. Across Buncombe County, 61 public schools serve about 29,908 students.
Among nearby public schools, Koontz Intermediate is closest at about 0.1 miles. In all, 6 other public schools sit within five miles of Valley Springs Middle. On state test proficiency, Valley Springs Middle ranks 3rd in a group of 8 nearby schools.
On the NCES locale scale, the school is City: Small.
Federal data show 664 students in 2020-21 and 654 in 2024-25, a difference of under 3%.
On allk12, people connected to Valley Springs Middle can post about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
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 Arden
- Avery's Creek ElementaryElementary · 557 students
- Glen Arden ElementaryElementary · 505 students
Other Valley Springs Middle schools
One other US public school is named Valley Springs Middle. Valley Springs Middle is the largest of the 2.
- VALLEY SPRINGS MIDDLE SCHOOLVALLEY SPRINGS, AR · 253 students
Nearby schools
- Koontz Intermediate0.1 mi · 725
- Estes Elementary0.2 mi · 754
- Roberson High0.4 mi · 1,479
- Avery's Creek Elementary2.2 mi · 557
- Glen Arden Elementary2.7 mi · 505
- FernLeaf4.7 mi · 763
Frequently asked questions
About Valley Springs MiddleHow many students attend Valley Springs Middle?
Valley Springs Middle enrolls approximately 654 students in grades 05-08.
Is Valley Springs Middle an elementary, middle, or high school?
Valley Springs Middle is a middle school covering grades 05-08.
How many teachers does Valley Springs Middle have?
Valley Springs Middle employs 46 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.3:1.
What is the student diversity at Valley Springs Middle?
Student demographics at Valley Springs Middle are roughly 51% White, 27% Hispanic, 11% Black, 3% Asian, 7% Two or more.
What district is Valley Springs Middle in?
Valley Springs Middle is part of Buncombe County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.