The top reported proficiency rate is 41% in English language arts. The lowest is 25% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Calhoun Middle School
Calhoun Middle School, a regular public school serving grades six through eight in the Ouachita Parish School System, sits in the unincorporated rural community of Calhoun, Louisiana. The community, situated along the former U.S. Route 80 corridor near Interstate 20 about ten miles west of West Monroe, is a car-dependent area with scattered residential properties and commercial clusters near the highway. There is no traditional downtown or municipal government; parish-level services govern the area. The school is one of four public schools in the immediate community, creating a contiguous K-12 pathway that begins at Calhoun Elementary, moves to Central Elementary, passes through Calhoun Middle, and finishes at West Ouachita High School.
The student body is predominantly white, with a small share of Black and Hispanic students enrolled. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on special education identification and English learner status was not available. The school operates within a district, Ouachita Parish, for which no major recent changes were found in public records.
Academically, the 2024-25 Louisiana LEAP 2025 assessments provide the clearest picture of student performance. On the English language arts test, a share of students met the state's proficiency benchmark (Levels 4 and 5), while the math proficiency rate was notably lower. Science and social studies results fell in between, with neither reaching the ELA rate. The school's overall proficiency index, calculated as the average across tested subjects, sits above the midpoint when placed against other districts in Ouachita Parish. It is worth noting that the social studies assessment had a cut score change for that year, which a parent may want to ask the school about when reviewing results. Only a single year of test data was available in the trend series, so there is no information on whether performance at Calhoun Middle School is improving or declining.
The school's proficiency profile reveals a gap between the language arts results and the math results that a family should weigh. For a middle school, this is a core academic measure. A parent might want to discuss with the school what math supports are in place and how the school is addressing that subject's weaker showing.
The housing market in the 71225 ZIP code shows home values around the middle tier relative to national benchmarks, with a slight year-over-year dip. Renting consumes a modest share of a typical local income, and the estimated monthly mortgage payment is lower than the national median income would suggest, which together indicate the area is not especially stretched from a housing-cost standpoint. The community has been described in publicly reported sources as attracting young families drawn by the cluster of four public schools that rank in top percentiles academically. However, population figures from the 2020 census show a slight decline from a decade earlier, creating a tension between the narrative of recent growth and the recorded census data. No specific new housing developments or planned projects were identified, so a family looking to buy or rent should treat the growth picture as mixed.
There are no program offerings listed in the available data, so it is unclear what electives, arts, or career exploration classes exist for middle schoolers. A parent may want to ask the school directly about course options, enrichment, and whether any extracurricular activities are available after the school day ends, as this information was not included in the record. The school's civil rights data, discipline statistics, staffing ratios, and attendance rates were also absent.
Calhoun Middle School serves a specific niche: a middle school in a small, rural community where the elementary and high school are down the road, where housing costs are moderate, and where academic proficiency, especially in math, is an area that needs attention. Families who already live in Calhoun and value the K-12 continuity will find a predictable pathway. A family considering moving to the area based on the schools' reputations should confirm those reputations with current data and ask the district directly about the middle school's academic trajectory and program offerings.
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