Middle Schools in School City of East Chicago

The School City of East Chicago, Indiana is home to a single middle school, Joseph Block Middle School, which serves grades 6-8. The school faces significant challenges, with a predominantly African American and Hispanic student population, low academic performance, high rates of poverty and chronic absenteeism, and an overall district ranking that places it among the lowest-performing in the state.

Joseph Block Middle School's academic performance, as measured by ILEARN proficiency rates, is well below state averages in both English Language Arts and Math. Only 19.22% of students are proficient in ELA, compared to a 15.03% district average, and just 3.43% are proficient in Math, far below the 12.62% district average. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 20.7% is also quite high, which can negatively impact student learning and outcomes.

Socioeconomic factors appear to play a significant role, with 81.93% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The School City of East Chicago district as a whole is ranked 342 out of 381 districts in Indiana and is rated only 1 star out of 5 by SchoolDigger, indicating that the district is struggling to provide high-quality education to its students. Addressing the challenges faced by Joseph Block Middle School and the broader district will likely require a comprehensive, multi-faceted approach to improve academic performance, attendance, and overall educational quality.