Derby North Middle School, Derby KS

Original Research by School Decision on Derby North Middle School

Derby North Middle School serves sixth through eighth graders as one of two middle schools in the Derby school district, a public system located in a fast-growing suburban community just outside Wichita. The school is a sizable campus drawing from across the city, with an enrollment that places it in the mid-to-large range for a middle school. The student body is diverse: a majority of students are White, and there are substantial shares of Hispanic students, students identifying as two or more races, Black students, and Asian students. Nearly half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a figure parents may want to note when considering the school’s resources and support structures.

On state assessments, performance varies by subject and grade. In mathematics, proficiency rates rise steadily from the lower grades to the upper grades, with the share of students meeting the bar substantially higher among eighth graders than among sixth graders. English language arts results are more consistent across grades, with roughly two in five students scoring proficient or above in each level. The eighth-grade science assessment shows a similar level to the ELA results. Compared with other middle grades schools in the district and across Sedgwick County, Derby North Middle School’s overall proficiency index falls below the county median. The data does not include participation rates or average scale scores for these tests, so it is not possible to see whether all students were tested or how close scores came to the proficiency cutoff; a parent interested in a fuller picture may want to ask the school directly for those details.

The community of Derby has been one of the faster-growing cities in Kansas, with its population rising steadily over the past couple of decades. It is primarily a residential suburb with a mix of local manufacturing, retail, and construction jobs, but many residents commute to aviation employers in Wichita. Housing values in the area are above the Kansas average, though still below the national norm, and rents have been rising along with prices. The city has invested in parks, a recreation center, a public library, and a municipal bus service. Schools are spread across separate campuses rather than clustered in a downtown. The school’s immediate setting is a suburban neighborhood on the north side of Derby, within a short drive of major highways.

Program offerings, discipline data, attendance rates, and staffing details were not available in this profile, so a parent would need to check the school’s website or contact the office for information about electives, clubs, extracurriculars, and how the school handles behavioral support. State testing for middle schools covers only the subjects reported here; there is no graduation rate because the school does not serve high school grades. The Derby district has not publicly reported major recent initiatives or strategic shifts that would directly affect the middle school.

For a family looking at Derby North Middle School, the academic picture is one of generally modest test results relative to other schools in the same county, with a noticeable improvement in math performance across the middle school years that may reflect effective instruction in the upper grades. The student body is economically mixed and racially diverse for a suburb of this size. The broader community offers a growing housing market, good parks, and proximity to Wichita’s job base, though the daily commute is a factor for many families. The school has no publicly flagged charter or magnet status, so it functions as a traditional neighborhood middle school within the district. A parent should weigh the moderate proficiency levels against the school’s rising math trend and ask about the specific supports available for students who are not yet meeting benchmarks.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 631%

School 31% · District 31% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 735%

School 35% · District 32% · ▲ 3 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 855%

School 55% · District 50% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 642%

School 42% · District 39% · ▲ 3 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 746%

School 46% · District 40% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 42% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Science

Grade 843%

School 43% · District 40% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

This schoolDerby, 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 6Lower-income30%Higher-income53%23 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income36%Higher-income53%18 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income34%Higher-income57%23 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income22%Higher-income39%17 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income25%Higher-income41%17 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income40%Higher-income67%28 pp gap