Merrillville High School

Summary:

Merrillville High School is a public high school serving 2,042 students in grades 9-12 in Merrillville, Indiana. The school is part of the Merrillville Community School Corporation, which is ranked 268 out of 381 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Merrillville High School stands out for its significantly higher percentage of African American students (67.92%) compared to nearby schools, which range from 4.07% to 84.66% African American. The school has maintained relatively high four-year graduation rates, ranging from 89.3% to 92.9% over the past five years, higher than some nearby schools. However, Merrillville High School has experienced high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 25.1% to 32.6% over the past three years, significantly higher than the nearby schools. Additionally, the school's test scores, particularly in mathematics, are consistently lower than the state and nearby school averages, with only 9.47% of 11th-grade students proficient or better in SAT Mathematics in 2023-2024, compared to the state average of 31.14%.

These findings suggest that Merrillville High School faces unique challenges, including racial disparities, high chronic absenteeism, and underperformance in mathematics, despite maintaining relatively high graduation rates. Addressing these issues will require a comprehensive approach that considers the school's specific context and the needs of its diverse student body. Comparisons to nearby schools, such as Neighbors' New Vistas High School and Gary Middle College, which have significantly lower graduation rates and higher chronic absenteeism rates, indicate that Merrillville High School may be serving a more stable student population, but still faces significant challenges.


Detail:

Public 9-12

 276 E 68th Pl
       Merrillville, IN  46410


(219) 650-5307

District: Merrillville Community School Corp

SchoolDigger Rank:
331st of 431 Indiana High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $11,799 Help


Feeder schools for Merrillville High School:

Elementary:    Edgar L Miller Elementary School
    Henry P Fieler Elementary School
    Homer Iddings Elementary School
    John Wood Elementary School
    More...
Middle:    Merrillville Intermediate School
    Pierce Middle School

Student/teacher ratio:  16.1 Help
Number of students:  2,051

Racial breakdown:

African American:
68.2%
Hispanic:
19.0%
White:
7.5%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  59.3% Help


 See top rated Indiana high schools

 Compare Merrillville High School to nearby high schools!

Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Merrillville High School ranks worse than 76.8% of high schools in Indiana. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 23.54. (See more...)
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The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at Merrillville High School who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.
Help
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
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Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (68.2%), Hispanic (19%), White (7.5%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 59.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Merrillville High School is 16.1. (See more...)
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Compare Merrillville High School employs 127 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Merrillville High School is $11,799.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Merrillville High School:

SchoolDigger ranks Merrillville High School 331st of 431 Indiana public high schools. (See Merrillville High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Multi-racial students:
Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
African American students:
Hispanic students:
White students:


Merrillville Community School Corp:

SchoolDigger ranks Merrillville Community School Corp 267th of 381 Indiana school districts. (See district ranking list.)


What do you think?

Your rating for Merrillville High School?

Rank History for Merrillville High School

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Compare

Rank History for all students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2005 44.99 233rd 349 33.2%
2006 41.70 258th 349 26.1%
2007 34.94 284th 354 19.8%
2008 24.74 317th 360 11.9%
2009 40.65 272nd 364 25.3%
2010 32.20 248th 362 31.5%
2011 48.15 172nd 364 52.7%
2012 42.58 208th 373 44.2%
2013 35.63 222nd 353 37.1%
2014 37.28 238th 379 37.2%
2015 21.71 338th 400 15.5%
2016 19.43 343rd 394 12.9%
2017 13.39 336th 380 11.6%
2018 24.08 318th 385 17.4%
2019 28.53 299th 389 23.1%
2021 32.76 278th 388 28.4%
2022 23.59 325th 409 20.5%
2023 21.78 322nd 398 19.1%
2024 23.54 331st 431 23.2%
See the entire list of Indiana High School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 40.73 50th 94 46.8%
2023 21.84 83rd 104 20.2%
2024 36.64 62nd 102 39.2%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 24.87 240th 285 15.8%
2024 17.57 265th 289 8.3%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 26.07 305th 379 19.5%
2024 30.66 271st 377 28.1%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 24.36 309th 388 20.4%
2024 20.05 319th 392 18.6%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 17.95 333rd 383 13.1%
2024 21.74 309th 392 21.2%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 57.39 40th 125 68.0%
2023 51.57 40th 125 68.0%
2024 51.37 43rd 132 67.4%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 59.14 52nd 164 68.3%
2023 37.48 101st 166 39.2%
2024 44.35 89th 184 51.6%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Merrillville High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools IN State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 59.62 142nd 378 62.4%
2023 73.47 54th 375 85.6%
2024 59.85 104th 381 72.7%
See the entire list of Best Indiana High Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Indiana Department 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.

Merrillville High School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 




Data source: Indiana Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 3)
50%

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Reviews:
by a parent
Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Open Quote Merrillville High School used to be a very solid school with dedicated staff, dedicated parents, and dedicated students! No longer...this school is the worst SUBURBAN school in the region! I graduated as a proud Merrillville Pirate! No longer...my family is now proud supporters of the Crown Point Bulldogs and many of my fellow alumn have made that decision as well. There are even more future families making that decision...We used to hate the Bulldogs...how times change!

Merrillville needs to do more to ensure that families who are sending their children to school here actually live in the Merrillville school district. Merrillville also needs to address the fact that gang violence and drugs are rampant even at MIS! It's a shame.

I am glad my last child will be graduating from CPHS. Close Quote


by a student
Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Open Quote Over the past few years, Merrillville High has received a bad rap for being one of the most problematic schools in Northwest, IN, when in reality, MHS is a great school. Not only does it host some of the finest facilities in the state, and fantastic football and B/G basketball teams, every student is given the proper tools to receive a great education. In recent years, there has been a large influx of students moving to Merrillville and transferring to MHS. Many of these students came from schools where there were ineffective teachers, so they had trouble learning and passing ISTEP (which results in a lower ISTEP score for the school and its ranking among other schools in the state). When they arrive at MHS though, many dedicated and supportive teachers spend their time before and after school helping those students that need help. There is even an optional after-school program where you can get help for any subject. If you need more proof at how MHS is a great school, look at the graduation rate for Indiana and compare it to the graduation rate of MHS. The Indiana graduation rate is in the 70% to 80% range, but the graduation rate for the class of 2010 was 90.8% (approximately 507 out about 550 seniors graduated!!) The class of 2009 had a graduation rate of 87.3% (that's over a 3% increase between 2009 and 2010!!) I promise, as a current student attending Merrillville High School, MHS is one of the best schools a student could possibly attend. Close Quote



Enrollment information for Merrillville High School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 1192 16 12 67 4 n/a n/a 0 1291
1989 1155 21 11 87 6 n/a n/a 0 1280
1990 1076 49 10 93 2 n/a n/a 0 1230
1991 1023 63 16 84 4 n/a n/a 0 1190
1992 1024 88 25 83 3 n/a n/a 0 1223
1993 1360 137 29 125 5 n/a n/a 0 1656
1994 1376 168 24 150 6 n/a n/a 0 1724
1995 1458 279 27 185 9 n/a n/a 0 1958
1996 1458 279 27 185 9 n/a n/a 0 1958
1997 1432 352 24 215 12 n/a n/a 6 2041
1998 1409 387 36 229 12 n/a n/a 0 2073
1999 1326 441 39 244 5 n/a n/a 0 2055
2000 1265 492 44 235 5 n/a n/a 0 2041
2001 1210 550 45 208 5 n/a n/a 0 2018
2002 1075 701 30 203 8 n/a n/a 0 2017
2003 1075 701 30 203 8 n/a n/a 0 2017
2004 1015 800 27 204 8 n/a n/a 0 2054
2005 980 918 34 225 8 n/a n/a 0 2165
2006 916 1083 30 242 4 n/a n/a 0 2275
2007 784 1160 29 240 5 n/a n/a 175 2393
2008 691 1188 20 238 4 n/a n/a 175 2316
2009 563 1259 20 233 5 n/a n/a 161 2241
2010 507 1357 22 234 3 n/a n/a 165 2288
2011 439 1319 21 349 2 1 265 0 2396
2012 424 1385 23 373 2 2 214 0 2423
2013 381 1386 23 379 3 2 161 0 2335
2014 343 1391 22 377 1 2 141 0 2277
2015 302 1380 23 401 3 2 117 0 2228
2016 266 1436 17 367 1 1 106 0 2194
2017 252 1469 20 373 1 0 100 0 2215
2018 227 1439 22 389 2 0 103 0 2182
2019 222 1417 24 422 1 0 101 0 2187
2020 198 1371 17 379 3 0 102 0 2070
2021 195 1326 15 381 4 0 100 0 2021
2022 178 1341 11 370 4 0 100 0 2004
2023 163 1387 11 378 4 0 99 0 2042
2024 154 1399 13 390 4 0 91 0 2051

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 Merrillville High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1291 75.3 17.1 6
1989 1280 68.5 18.6 3.3
1990 1230 70.8 17.3 4.3
1991 1190 70.1 16.9 3.1
1992 1223 68.1 17.9 4.5
1993 1656 88.1 18.8 4.8
1994 1724 88.6 19.5 5.2
1995 1958 89.0 22.0 5.1
1996 1958 89.0 22.0 5.1
1997 2041 94.3 21.6 4.2
1998 2073 100.3 20.7 5.5
1999 2055 55.2 37.2 9.2
2000 2041 105.0 19.4 10.5
2001 2018 103.8 19.4 10.3
2002 2017 96.4 20.9 15.9
2003 2017 96.4 20.9 15.9
2004 2054 97.8 21.0 21.3
2005 2165 100.9 21.5 27.8
2006 2275 105.4 21.6 26.5
2007 2393 n/a n/a 34.9
2008 2316 110.5 21.0 34.6
2009 2241 108.8 20.6 39
2010 2288 113.0 20.2 43.5
2011 2396 118.7 20.1 51.1
2012 2423 129.4 18.7 53
2013 2335 120.4 19.3 53.9
2014 2277 119.4 19.0 55.4
2015 2228 119.0 18.7 56.6
2016 2194 116.0 18.9 55.7
2017 2215 124.5 17.7 55.5
2018 2182 131.3 16.6 61.4
2019 2187 128.7 16.9 59.7
2020 2070 120.0 17.2 61.2
2021 2021 123.3 16.3 59.2
2022 2004 136.4 14.6 60.3
2023 2042 125.0 16.3 63.9
2024 2051 127.0 16.1 59.3

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 Merrillville High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1291 75.3 17.1 6
1989 1280 68.5 18.6 3.3
1990 1230 70.8 17.3 4.3
1991 1190 70.1 16.9 3.1
1992 1223 68.1 17.9 4.5
1993 1656 88.1 18.8 4.8
1994 1724 88.6 19.5 5.2
1995 1958 89.0 22.0 5.1
1996 1958 89.0 22.0 5.1
1997 2041 94.3 21.6 4.2
1998 2073 100.3 20.7 5.5
1999 2055 55.2 37.2 9.2
2000 2041 105.0 19.4 10.5
2001 2018 103.8 19.4 10.3
2002 2017 96.4 20.9 15.9
2003 2017 96.4 20.9 15.9
2004 2054 97.8 21.0 21.3
2005 2165 100.9 21.5 27.8
2006 2275 105.4 21.6 26.5
2007 2393 n/a n/a 34.9
2008 2316 110.5 21.0 34.6
2009 2241 108.8 20.6 39
2010 2288 113.0 20.2 43.5
2011 2396 118.7 20.1 51.1
2012 2423 129.4 18.7 53
2013 2335 120.4 19.3 53.9
2014 2277 119.4 19.0 55.4
2015 2228 119.0 18.7 56.6
2016 2194 116.0 18.9 55.7
2017 2215 124.5 17.7 55.5
2018 2182 131.3 16.6 61.4
2019 2187 128.7 16.9 59.7
2020 2070 120.0 17.2 61.2
2021 2021 123.3 16.3 59.2
2022 2004 136.4 14.6 60.3
2023 2042 125.0 16.3 63.9
2024 2051 127.0 16.1 59.3

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 Merrillville High School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $113 (1.1%) $9,795 (98.9%) $9,908
2020 $147 (1.4%) $10,095 (98.6%) $10,243
2021 $367 (3.4%) $10,289 (96.6%) $10,656
2022 $1,080 (9.2%) $10,718 (90.8%) $11,799

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

Impact of COVID-19 on Merrillville High 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 299th of 389 High schoolsRanks 322nd of 398 High schools
 4%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
End of Course Biology (Merrillville High School)24.915.2
 9.7%
   End of Course Biology (Merrillville Community School Corp)24.915.2
 9.7%
   End of Course Biology (Indiana)38.629
 9.6%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students21872042
 6.6%
African American14171387
 2.1%
American Indian14
 300%
Asian2411
 54.2%
Hispanic422378
 10.4%
Pacific Islander00
White222163
 26.6%
Two or More Races10199
 2%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients59.7%63.9%
 4.2%


Schools Near Merrillville High School









Frequently Asked Questions about Merrillville High School

Merrillville High School ranks in the bottom 23.2% of Indiana high schools.

In the 2023-24 school year, 2,051 students attended Merrillville High School.

Students at Merrillville High School are 68% African American, 19% Hispanic, 8% White, 4% Two or more races.


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