Trail Ridge Middle School, Gardner KS

Original Research by School Decision on Trail Ridge Middle School

Trail Ridge Middle School serves students in fifth through eighth grade in Gardner, a fast-growing suburban community in Johnson County about a half-hour drive from downtown Kansas City. The school is part of the Gardner Edgerton district, which operates three middle schools and one high school within the city. The district itself is the largest employer in town, and the school is located on East Grand Street.

Academic performance at Trail Ridge shows a mixed picture that parents will want to examine closely. Across tested subjects and grade levels, the school’s overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quartile among districts in Johnson County, a county that includes some of the state’s highest-performing schools. State assessment results by grade reveal a notable pattern: fifth graders post the strongest scores, with roughly half or more meeting proficiency benchmarks in math, English language arts, and science. In sixth and seventh grades, however, proficiency drops sharply. English language arts in sixth grade and math in sixth and seventh grade all fall well below half of students reaching the proficient level. Eighth grade scores improve somewhat, particularly in math, but remain below the county median. Kansas adjusted its assessment cut scores in the most recent testing year, so these results may not directly compare with prior years; still, the dip in the middle grades is a clear soft spot that a family may wish to discuss with the school.

The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic population and smaller shares of students who are Black, Asian, or identify with two or more races. Just over four in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a middle-income community with a noticeable share of families who face economic pressure. The school’s demographic profile is less affluent and less diverse than some Johnson County schools to the north, but it is typical of Gardner’s expanding suburban footprint.

Gardner has been one of the fastest-growing cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area, doubling in size over the past decade. The housing market reflects that growth. Home values in the area sit above the Kansas average and have been rising moderately, while rents are stable and relatively affordable compared with the rest of Johnson County. A typical mortgage payment would exceed the median rent, which is common in this part of the metro. The community is car-dependent, with a historic downtown along Main Street, but most schools, including Trail Ridge, are on separate campuses spread across residential subdivisions. The city maintains a parks and trails system, and a library branch serves the area.

No recent parent-relevant changes were found from the district, such as boundary shifts or program launches, and key data on discipline, staffing, and chronic absenteeism are not available in the record. Because Trail Ridge is a middle school, there is no graduation rate to report. These gaps mean the school’s full picture is incomplete from public data alone.

Trail Ridge Middle School fits families who value a growing suburban environment with moderate housing costs relative to the rest of Johnson County. The proficiency pattern suggests that students may need additional support as they move through the middle grades, particularly in math and reading. A parent considering this school should follow up with the school directly on how it addresses the drop in performance after fifth grade, what interventions are in place, and what the school’s own data show for recent years.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 558%

School 58% · District 55% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 631%

School 31% · District 34% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 31 pts below county median

Grade 732%

School 32% · District 39% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 55% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Grade 628%

School 28% · District 35% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 32 pts below county median

Grade 738%

School 38% · District 43% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 44% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Science

Grade 546%

School 46% · District 52% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 838%

School 38% · District 37% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

This schoolGardner Edgerton, 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 5Lower-income49%Higher-income62%13 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income14%Higher-income37%23 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income33%Higher-income42%9 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income21%Higher-income43%22 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income41%Higher-income69%28 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income14%Higher-income43%28 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income26%Higher-income37%11 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income33%Higher-income55%22 pp gap