Prairie Grove Middle School, Prairie Grove AR

Original Research by School Decision on Prairie Grove Middle School

Prairie Grove Middle School serves grades four through six in the Prairie Grove School District, located in the small but growing city of Prairie Grove in Washington County, Arkansas. The school enrolls several hundred students, and its student body is predominantly white, with smaller shares of Hispanic, American Indian, Asian, Black, and multiracial students. More than a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a marker of moderate economic diversity.

Prairie Grove itself sits within the fast-growing Northwest Arkansas region. It has agricultural roots, with a historic downtown centered near the Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park. The city has seen notable population growth in recent years, and the housing market reflects that demand: typical home values in the area are higher than the state median but below the national median, while rents are moderate relative to incomes. The community is family-oriented, with a compact downtown, a walking trail near the aquatic park, and seasonal events like the Clothesline Fair. There is no fixed-route transit, but demand-response service is available. The school is one of four in the district, which also includes an elementary school, a junior high, and a high school.

On state assessments administered through the Arkansas ATLAS program, Prairie Grove Middle School posted results that place its overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades above the midpoint relative to other districts in Washington County. That is a strength. Within the school, performance varies by subject and grade level. Science results stand out as the strongest area, with high proficiency rates in all three grades. Math performance improves as students advance: the fourth-grade rate is lower, while fifth and sixth grades show solid proficiency. English language arts presents a more uneven picture. Fifth grade is the strongest, fourth grade is moderate, and sixth grade is the weakest—a dip that a parent may want to explore with the school to understand what supports are in place for literacy at that level.

The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. Several data points that often inform a fuller picture are not available in public records for this school. No chronic absenteeism rate is reported. There is no information on staffing, discipline, or course access such as advanced or enrichment offerings. Special education and English learner counts are also missing from the data. Because the school serves only grades four through six, there is no graduation rate to consider; that metric applies only to high schools. A parent may wish to ask the school directly about class sizes, intervention programs, and any accelerated or elective opportunities.

The district itself has not publicly reported any major changes in recent years that would affect families. The school’s location on North Mock Street places it within the city’s grid, though specific details about its physical relation to downtown are not specified in available materials. Overall, Prairie Grove Middle School offers a solid academic foundation in a growing community, with particular strength in science and a county-competitive proficiency profile, while the more variable English results invite a closer conversation with the school.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 438%

School 38% · District 38%

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 550%

School 50% · District 50%

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Grade 651%

School 51% · District 51%

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 445%

School 45% · District 45%

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 49%

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 637%

School 37% · District 37%

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Science

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Grade 569%

School 69% · District 69%

▲ 36 pts above state median · ▲ 39 pts above county median

Grade 655%

School 55% · District 55%

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

This schoolPRAIRIE GROVE SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 4Lower-income40%Higher-income54%15 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income24%Higher-income40%16 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income40%7 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income47%Higher-income53%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income41%Higher-income53%12 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income45%Higher-income45%0 pp gap