Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

Summary:

Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School is a public middle school in Decatur, Georgia, serving 718 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the DeKalb County School District, which is ranked 138 out of 203 school districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite increased per-student spending over the years, Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School consistently performs below the DeKalb County and Georgia state averages on standardized tests. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, the school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts ranged from 19% to 23.9%, compared to 32.5% to 37.2% for the county and 39.8% to 44.7% for the state. In Mathematics, the school's proficiency rates were even lower, ranging from 6.3% to 19%, compared to 19.8% to 28.9% for the county and 34.7% to 43.7% for the state. The school has also consistently ranked in the bottom half of Georgia middle schools and has received a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger for most of the past decade.

When comparing Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School to nearby schools in the DeKalb County district, it becomes clear that the school is underperforming compared to its peers. For example, The Champion Middle Theme School, located just 5.17 miles away, has significantly higher proficiency rates in both English Language Arts and Mathematics, as well as a higher 3-star rating from SchoolDigger. The high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch at Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School, consistently above 99%, suggests the school may be serving a population with significant socioeconomic challenges, which could be contributing to the school's poor academic performance.


Detail:

Public 6-8

 5200 Covington Hwy
       Decatur, GA  30035


(678) 875-0302

District: DeKalb County

SchoolDigger Rank:
498th of 588 Georgia Middle Schools


Students who attend Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School usually attend:

High:    Towers High School

Feeder schools for Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School:

Elementary:    Canby Lane Elementary School
    Peachcrest Elementary School
    Rowland Elementary School

Student/teacher ratio:  15.9 Help
Number of students:  718

Racial breakdown:

African American:
80.5%
Hispanic:
9.6%
Asian:
4.6%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  100% Help


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Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School ranks worse than 84.7% of middle schools in Georgia. (See more...)
Help
Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 17.27. (See more...)
Finance
Schooldigger Rankings:

Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School was not ranked this year due to insufficient test score data.
SchoolDigger ranks Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School 498th of 588 Georgia public middle schools. (See Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School in the ranking list.)

DeKalb County:

SchoolDigger ranks DeKalb County 138th of 203 Georgia school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Your rating for Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School?

Rank History for Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

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Compare
Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools GA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2006 12.15 397th 420 5.5%
2007 17.70 406th 445 8.8%
2008 14.69 427th 462 7.6%
2009 21.48 412th 466 11.6%
2010 16.19 451st 494 8.7%
2011 27.75 419th 504 16.9%
2012 10.71 474th 508 6.7%
2013 9.69 495th 527 6.1%
2014 7.57 496th 521 4.8%
2015 11.79 482nd 537 10.2%
2016 14.19 479th 545 12.1%
2017 14.66 479th 539 11.1%
2018 10.33 509th 543 6.3%
2019 9.31 526th 559 5.9%
2021 10.22 504th 542 7.0%
2022 12.96 508th 567 10.4%
2023 16.31 497th 577 13.9%
2024 17.27 498th 588 15.3%
See the entire list of Georgia Middle School Rankings!

Data source: test scores: Georgia Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    





Data source: Georgia Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 4.7)
67%

33%

0%

0%

0%

  

Reviews:
by a student
Friday, July 21, 2017

Open Quote This school is not as bad as the reviews say. The faculty and staff are trying their best to make a positive change! They really just need to rid the school of the disrespectful children who don't care about learning. There are negatives about the school, but there is also good. Please consider going here.
Sincerly,
A student Close Quote



Enrollment information for Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
2002 12 1415 15 23 2 n/a n/a 0 1467
2003 12 1415 15 23 2 n/a n/a 0 1467
2004 7 1391 20 15 1 n/a n/a 0 1434
2005 4 1350 21 20 0 n/a n/a 17 1412
2006 6 1251 21 26 2 n/a n/a 20 1326
2007 4 1122 15 26 2 n/a n/a 23 1192
2008 4 991 16 29 2 n/a n/a 32 1074
2009 3 919 16 22 1 n/a n/a 27 988
2010 3 909 13 19 3 0 8 0 955
2011 3 863 13 12 2 0 10 0 903
2012 3 969 7 24 0 1 10 0 1014
2013 1 869 8 26 2 1 9 0 916
2014 2 875 12 37 4 1 5 0 936
2015 4 839 9 41 2 0 7 0 902
2016 10 769 9 48 1 0 7 0 844
2017 11 787 18 61 0 0 11 0 888
2018 7 762 16 61 0 1 11 0 858
2019 8 759 19 63 2 3 8 0 862
2020 5 708 18 53 5 1 4 0 794
2021 5 652 17 50 7 1 9 0 741
2022 8 631 21 66 3 1 9 0 739
2023 13 578 33 69 7 2 16 0 718

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2002 1467 95.0 15.4 77.2
2003 1467 95.0 15.4 77.2
2004 1434 82.8 17.3 79.1
2005 1412 78.9 17.9 81.9
2006 1326 82.2 16.1 85.1
2007 1192 81.0 14.7 83.6
2008 1074 78.5 13.7 88.8
2009 988 68.3 14.5 88
2010 955 65.3 14.6 87.7
2011 903 57.0 15.8 88.4
2012 1014 67.0 15.1 91.8
2013 916 56.0 16.3 92.1
2014 936 52.0 18.0 94.7
2015 902 53.0 17.0 100
2016 844 50.0 16.8 99.6
2017 888 50.0 17.7 100
2018 858 59.0 14.5 100
2019 862 57.0 15.1 100
2020 794 54.0 14.7 99.2
2021 741 51.0 14.5 99.2
2022 739 45.0 16.4 n/a
2023 718 45.0 15.9 100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2002 1467 95.0 15.4 77.2
2003 1467 95.0 15.4 77.2
2004 1434 82.8 17.3 79.1
2005 1412 78.9 17.9 81.9
2006 1326 82.2 16.1 85.1
2007 1192 81.0 14.7 83.6
2008 1074 78.5 13.7 88.8
2009 988 68.3 14.5 88
2010 955 65.3 14.6 87.7
2011 903 57.0 15.8 88.4
2012 1014 67.0 15.1 91.8
2013 916 56.0 16.3 92.1
2014 936 52.0 18.0 94.7
2015 902 53.0 17.0 100
2016 844 50.0 16.8 99.6
2017 888 50.0 17.7 100
2018 858 59.0 14.5 100
2019 862 57.0 15.1 100
2020 794 54.0 14.7 99.2
2021 741 51.0 14.5 99.2
2022 739 45.0 16.4 n/a
2023 718 45.0 15.9 100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

Help

YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2017 $771 (8.4%) $8,462 (91.6%) $9,233
2018 $811 (7.8%) $9,538 (92.2%) $10,349
2019 $984 (8.2%) $11,021 (91.8%) $12,006

Data source: Georgia Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 526th of 559 Middle schoolsRanks 497th of 577 Middle schools
 8%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
6th Grade English Language Arts (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)16.419.1
 2.7%
   6th Grade English Language Arts (DeKalb County)34.331.1
 3.2%
   6th Grade English Language Arts (Georgia)4639.2
 6.8%
6th Grade Mathematics (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)87.9
 0.1%
   6th Grade Mathematics (DeKalb County)25.419.7
 5.7%
   6th Grade Mathematics (Georgia)4032.9
 7.1%
7th Grade English Language Arts (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)14.316.5
 2.2%
   7th Grade English Language Arts (DeKalb County)27.529.6
 2.1%
   7th Grade English Language Arts (Georgia)3939.1
 0.1%
7th Grade Mathematics (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)8.18.2
 0.1%
   7th Grade Mathematics (DeKalb County)27.920.2
 7.7%
   7th Grade Mathematics (Georgia)4334.9
 8.1%
8th Grade English Language Arts (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)21.423
 1.6%
   8th Grade English Language Arts (DeKalb County)38.535.7
 2.8%
   8th Grade English Language Arts (Georgia)4742.1
 4.9%
8th Grade Mathematics (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)6.19.2
 3.1%
   8th Grade Mathematics (DeKalb County)26.523.4
 3.1%
   8th Grade Mathematics (Georgia)3536.2
 1.2%
8th Grade Science (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)11.517.6
 6.1%
   8th Grade Science (DeKalb County)25.920.1
 5.8%
   8th Grade Science (Georgia)3226.4
 5.6%
8th Grade Social Studies (Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School)9.710.4
 0.7%
   8th Grade Social Studies (DeKalb County)26.921.9
 5%
   8th Grade Social Studies (Georgia)4135.9
 5.1%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students862718
 16.7%
African American759578
 23.8%
American Indian27
 250%
Asian1933
 73.7%
Hispanic6369
 9.5%
Pacific Islander32
 33.3%
White813
 62.5%
Two or More Races816
 100%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients100%100%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School

Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School ranks in the bottom 15.3% of Georgia middle schools.

Students at Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School are 81% African American, 10% Hispanic, 5% Asian, 2% Two or more races, 2% White.

Students who attend Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School usually go on to attend Towers High School

In the 2022-23 school year, 718 students attended Mary McLeod Bethune Middle School.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Georgia Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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