Black Hawk Middle

Set in Madison, Wisconsin, Black Hawk Middle is a cozy junior high, overseen by Madison Metropolitan School District. It instructs 300 students across grades 6 through 8. Enrollment runs roughly 21% smaller than the state mean of about 381.

Across the 53 schools in Madison Metropolitan School District (25,155 students total), Black Hawk Middle accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

In terms of who attends, Black Hawk Middle lists that 31% of students identify as Black, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups. The remainder breaks down as 24% Hispanic, 22% White, 12% Asian, 10% multiracial. That is meaningfully more Black than the county at large, where the share is closer to 5%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, On paper, Black Hawk Middle has 34 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 8.7:1. The state averages around 12.8:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 70% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Dane County runs at roughly 32%, so the school's eligibility rate is somewhat above the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Black Hawk Middle sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 34.5%; this one delivers 26.9%.

In the area at large, ACS estimates for Dane County put median household earnings sit near $89,975, 55% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 5%. Across Dane County's 169 public schools (combined enrollment of about 78,525 students), Black Hawk Middle is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is Gompers Elementary, roughly 0.1 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, Black Hawk Middle comes 5th of 6 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 34.2%.

Geographically, the school is in an inner-city area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Black Hawk Middle has shrank 24%, going from 396 students in 2018 to 300 in 2025. The White share of enrollment decreased from 32% to 22% over that span. Class-load math has tightened: from 10.9:1 in 2018 to 8.7:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, recent activity here tends to focus on science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.