The top reported proficiency rate is 86% in Math. The lowest is 74% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Ikm-manning Middle School
IKM-Manning Middle School serves grades four through eight in Manning, a small rural town in Carroll County, Iowa. The school is part of the IKM-Manning Community School District, which was created by a district merger a number of years ago. Manning itself is a compact residential town of about a few hundred people, roughly 90 miles northwest of Des Moines, with a traditional downtown Main Street corridor and a reliance on agriculture and local services. The population has been gradually declining, consistent with many small rural Iowa communities. Families moving here should expect a quiet, car-dependent setting with a modest central commercial core and limited development on the horizon.
The middle school enrolls just under 300 students across grades four through eight, making it a small school by national standards. The student body is predominantly white, with a small Hispanic share and a very small number of students from other racial backgrounds. About a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure that points to a moderate level of economic need within the student population. The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report, and data on special education and English learner populations was not available in the record reviewed.
On state assessments, which cover math, English language arts, and science, IKM-Manning Middle School posts results that are strong. Math proficiency sits at a level well above the midpoint of schools statewide, and English language arts and science also show proficient rates that are solid. The school’s overall proficiency index across tested subjects places it in the top quartile relative to other districts in Carroll County. These are meaningful numbers for a parent weighing academic foundation: the school’s core instruction appears to be functioning effectively, and students as a group are meeting state benchmarks at a rate that competes well within the county. Participation in the state test was near universal, so the results reflect nearly the entire student body.
The housing context is moderate by Iowa standards. Home values in the ZIP code covering Manning are below the state median and well below the national median. Mortgage rates at the time of this data were in the mid-to-upper six percent range. For a family moving into the area, homeownership is more attainable here than in many parts of the state, though the trade-off is a smaller local job base and a town with a slowly shrinking population. The school district operates the elementary and middle schools, and high school students attend IKM-Manning High School within the same district.
No data was available on several dimensions a parent might want to explore further. Discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, and staffing ratios were not part of the information provided. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes such as boundary adjustments, program cuts, or facility plans; the record simply shows the district as it has been operating. A parent considering this school would benefit from asking the school directly about class sizes, special education supports, and enrichment offerings at the middle school level, since those details were not captured in the data reviewed.
For a family looking for a small rural middle school where core academic proficiency is on strong footing, and where the community is quiet and residential with a declining population trajectory, IKM-Manning Middle School presents a clear academic picture. A family that values a tight-knit setting and solid test results will find a school that fits that description. A family that wants information on behavioral climate, program variety, or staffing ratios will need to get those details directly from the school.
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