Middle Schools in West Des Moines Community School District

The West Des Moines Community School District is home to two middle schools: Indian Hills Junior High School and Stilwell Junior High School. Based on the available data, Indian Hills Junior High School stands out as the higher-performing school in the district, with stronger test scores, a more diverse student population, and a lower student-teacher ratio.

Indian Hills Junior High School boasts impressive academic achievements, with 83.2% proficiency in 7th grade ELA and 81.3% proficiency in 8th grade Math, outperforming both the district and state averages. The school also has a higher percentage of students proficient in ELA, Math, and Science compared to Stilwell Junior High and the district/state averages. Additionally, Indian Hills has a lower student-teacher ratio of 13.1, compared to 14.3 at Stilwell.

While both schools perform above the state averages in academic proficiency, the West Des Moines Community School District as a whole demonstrates a strong educational system. However, the difference in free/reduced lunch rates between the two schools (45.4% at Indian Hills vs. 36.11% at Stilwell) suggests potential socioeconomic disparities within the district that warrant further investigation. The similar spending per student at both schools, despite the performance differences, also raises questions about the efficient allocation of resources and the factors contributing to academic success beyond just funding.