Windy Hill Middle, Owings MD - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Windy Hill Middle

Windy Hill Middle School serves grades six through eight in Owings, an exurban community in northern Calvert County. The school sits at the eastern edge of the census-designated place on a contiguous campus with Windy Hill Elementary. Owings itself is a car-dependent, primarily residential area with a mix of farmland, wooded lots, and subdivisions. Most residents commute out of town for work; commercial activity is minimal, concentrated around a small cluster of businesses at the main intersection. The town has seen rapid housing development over recent decades, followed by a period of flat population growth, though a 2025 county proposal to double the size of the town center signals potential for further change.

Academically, Windy Hill presents a split picture. In English language arts, students perform well across all three grades, with a strong majority meeting or exceeding the state standard. This is a clear strength. Mathematics is a softer area. While a meaningful share of sixth graders reach proficiency, the rate drops notably by seventh grade and falls further in eighth grade. Science and social studies results for eighth graders sit around the halfway mark, with about half of students scoring proficient on the state assessments in each subject. A parent might want to ask the school about the mathematics trajectory and any targeted supports in place for the upper grades.

The student body is predominantly white, with smaller but visible populations of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial students. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a share that positions the school in a moderate range for economic need. The data did not include information on special education or English learner enrollment, nor on discipline, attendance, or course access, so those dimensions of the school environment are not captured here.

Housing in the Owings area is expensive, with values climbing well above both state and national benchmarks. That cost, combined with the area’s heavy reliance on commuting, makes this a setting that tends to work best for families who already live within the attendance boundary or who are prepared for a long drive to work. The district’s website did not surface any recent major changes—such as boundary shifts, new programs, or funding referendums—that would alter the near-term landscape for a prospective family.

Windy Hill Middle fits a family that values a midsize middle school with notably strong literacy outcomes and is willing to look more closely at math instruction. The school operates within a district that, by the data available, has not seen recent upheaval. The community context is suburban-exurban, quiet, and oriented around the household rather than a walkable downtown. For a family weighing this school, the key questions are about math support and whether the commute and housing costs align with their priorities.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 635%

School 35% · district not reported

▲ 22 pts above state median

Grade 726%

School 26% · district not reported

▲ 14 pts above state median

Grade 810%

School 10% · district not reported

▲ 5 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 671%

School 71% · district not reported

▲ 26 pts above state median

Grade 774%

School 74% · district not reported

▲ 27 pts above state median

Grade 868%

School 68% · district not reported

▲ 24 pts above state median

Science

Grade 848%

School 48% · district not reported

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

Social studies

Grade 852%

School 52% · District 53% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 21 pts above state median

This schoolCalvert County Public Schools, 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-income48%Higher-income75%27 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income35%Higher-income50%15 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income22%Higher-income46%23 pp gap

Mathematics

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

Grade 7Lower-income7%Higher-income20%14 pp gap