Is Mercer County Junior High School a good school?

Mercer County Junior High School ranks 902 nd of 1363 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Mercer County Junior High School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 272 students attended Mercer County Junior High School.

What is the racial makeup of Mercer County Junior High School?

Students at Mercer County Junior High School are 91% White, 4% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 2% Hispanic, 1% African American.

What high school do graduates of Mercer County Junior High School attend?

Students who attend Mercer County Junior High School usually go on to attend Mercer County High School

Mercer County Junior High School

Summary:

Mercer County Junior High School is a public middle school located in Aledo, Illinois, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 299 students. The school is part of the Mercer County School District 404, which is ranked 564 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Academically, Mercer County Junior High School's performance is generally below the state averages across all grades and subjects, with particularly low proficiency rates in Mathematics. However, the school's performance in Science is relatively stronger, with an 8th-grade proficiency rate of 67.3%, higher than the state average of 53.2%. The school also faces significant disparities in student group performance, with its White, Special Education, Low Socio-Economic Status, Disabled, and Military Connected student subgroups all ranked in the bottom quarter of Illinois middle schools. Additionally, Mercer County Junior High School has experienced high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 18.8% to 31.5% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average.

When compared to nearby schools, such as United Junior High School and Sherrard Junior High School, Mercer County Junior High School generally underperforms in academic measures, with lower proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics. However, the school's performance in Science is relatively stronger, suggesting potential areas of strength that could be leveraged to improve overall academic outcomes. To address these challenges, the school and district should closely examine their instructional practices, support systems, and resource allocation to identify areas for improvement and implement targeted interventions to ensure all students have the opportunity to succeed.

Detail:

Public 6-8

1002 Sw 6Th St
Aledo, IL 61231-2100

(309) 584-4174

District: Mercer County School District 404

SchoolDigger Rank:
902^nd of 1,363 Illinois Middle Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $15,154

Students who attend Mercer County Junior High School usually attend:

High:

Mercer County High School

Feeder schools for Mercer County Junior High School:

Elementary:	Apollo Elementary School
	New Boston Elementary School

Student/teacher ratio: 11.5

Number of students: 272

Racial breakdown:

White:

90.8%

Two or more races:

4.0%

Asian:

1.8%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 43.8%

See top rated Illinois middle schools

Compare Mercer County Junior High School to nearby middle schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Mercer County Junior High School ranks worse than 66.2% of middle schools in Illinois. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 30.22. (See more...)

Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: White (90.8%), two or more races (4%), Asian (1.8%). (See more...)

Compare Details 43.8% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Mercer County Junior High School is 11.5. (See more...)

Compare Mercer County Junior High School employs 23.6 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Mercer County Junior High School is $15,154.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Mercer County Junior High School:

SchoolDigger ranks Mercer County Junior High School 902^nd of 1363 Illinois public middle schools. (See Mercer County Junior High School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Military Connected students:

Male students:

White students:

Mercer County School District 404:

SchoolDigger ranks Mercer County School District 404 564^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Mercer County Junior High School

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Rank History for all students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2011	57.62	660^th	1344	50.9%
2012	67.28	476^th	1365	65.1%
2013	51.85	669^th	1367	51.1%
2014	54.73	610^th	1322	53.9%
2015	67.28	332^nd	1302	74.5%
2016	54.81	513^th	1294	60.4%
2017	43.90	687^th	1293	46.9%
2018	55.67	522^nd	1293	59.6%
2019	50.31	619^th	1356	54.4%
2021	42.07	621^st	1241	50.0%
2022	49.41	600^th	1369	56.2%
2023	43.07	713^th	1367	47.8%
2024	30.22	902^nd	1363	33.8%

See the entire list of Illinois Middle School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	24.64	570^th	602	5.3%
2019	30.68	557^th	792	29.7%
2021	36.77	314^th	548	42.7%
2022	37.27	436^th	781	44.2%
2023	24.09	665^th	805	17.4%
2024	20.57	723^rd	802	9.9%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	51.60	491^st	1161	57.7%
2019	50.67	544^th	1217	55.3%
2021	42.37	544^th	1019	46.6%
2022	43.14	631^st	1221	48.3%
2023	40.52	704^th	1234	42.9%
2024	28.67	890^th	1219	27.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	50.33	577^th	1226	52.9%
2019	51.74	573^rd	1276	55.1%
2021	44.45	512^th	1017	49.7%
2022	54.49	476^th	1286	63.0%
2023	42.88	685^th	1275	46.3%
2024	33.10	800^th	1251	36.1%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	30.66	478^th	674	29.1%
2024	23.88	573^rd	639	10.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Military Connected students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	33.18	8^th	12	33.3%
2024	16.80	11^th	12	8.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Military Connected Students!

Rank History for Male students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	58.32	434^th	1223	64.5%
2019	47.57	614^th	1296	52.6%
2021	33.46	656^th	1048	37.4%
2022	42.82	648^th	1286	49.6%
2023	42.12	679^th	1292	47.4%
2024	27.14	886^th	1264	29.9%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for White students at Mercer County Junior High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	38.60	554^th	889	37.7%
2019	32.24	622^nd	905	31.3%
2021	29.26	578^th	813	28.9%
2022	30.89	637^th	898	29.1%
2023	27.08	686^th	895	23.4%
2024	14.81	785^th	875	10.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Illinois State Board of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: Illinois State Board of Education

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Enrollment information for Mercer County Junior High School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2010	192	0	0	4	0	n/a	n/a	2	198
2011	205	3	0	4	0	0	4	0	216
2012	194	2	0	1	0	0	6	0	203
2013	191	1	0	1	0	0	7	0	200
2014	197	1	1	2	0	0	5	0	206
2015	177	0	2	5	0	0	8	0	192
2016	182	4	1	1	0	0	8	0	196
2017	175	2	1	2	0	0	7	0	187
2018	177	4	2	3	0	0	8	0	194
2019	186	1	2	5	0	0	5	0	199
2020	186	1	0	9	0	0	2	0	198
2021	199	1	0	8	0	0	4	0	212
2022	194	1	0	4	1	0	6	0	206
2023	279	4	3	6	0	0	6	1	299
2024	247	4	5	5	0	0	11	0	272

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 Mercer County Junior High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2010	198	15.0	13.2	n/a
2011	216	15.0	14.4	42.1
2012	203	16.0	12.6	39.9
2013	200	30.3	6.5	46.5
2014	206	14.2	14.4	35.9
2015	192	14.0	13.7	40.1
2016	196	14.0	14.0	51
2017	187	15.0	12.4	45.5
2018	194	15.3	12.6	41.8
2019	199	16.1	12.3	40.2
2020	198	15.3	12.9	34.8
2021	212	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	206	16.1	12.7	42.2
2023	299	23.6	12.6	47.2
2024	272	23.6	11.5	43.8

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 Mercer County Junior High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2010	198	15.0	13.2	n/a
2011	216	15.0	14.4	42.1
2012	203	16.0	12.6	39.9
2013	200	30.3	6.5	46.5
2014	206	14.2	14.4	35.9
2015	192	14.0	13.7	40.1
2016	196	14.0	14.0	51
2017	187	15.0	12.4	45.5
2018	194	15.3	12.6	41.8
2019	199	16.1	12.3	40.2
2020	198	15.3	12.9	34.8
2021	212	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	206	16.1	12.7	42.2
2023	299	23.6	12.6	47.2
2024	272	23.6	11.5	43.8

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.

Immunization Rates