The top reported proficiency rate is 36% in English language arts. The lowest is 7% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Matthew Henson Middle School
Matthew Henson Middle School, a regular public school in Indian Head, Maryland, serves students in sixth through eighth grade as part of Charles County Public Schools. The school is the only middle school in this small Potomac River town, a place closely tied to the Naval Support Facility Indian Head, whose workforce of several thousand commutes through the community. The town itself has a modest population, a compact layout along the highway that ends at the base, and a growing but still limited commercial strip. Single-family homes, condominiums, and apartments are available, and housing values in the surrounding zip code sit below the state median. A 13-mile paved rail-trail, a community arts theater, and the Velocity Center (a technology education hub linked to the base) serve as local anchors.
The student body of roughly six hundred to seven hundred students is diverse. A substantial share of students come from low-income households, as measured by free and reduced-price meal eligibility. Racially, the largest group is Black, followed by smaller shares of Hispanic, white, and multiracial students, with Asian and Native American students each making up a small fraction. Data on students with disabilities and English learners were not available, so a full picture of the school’s special education and language support landscape is missing.
Academic performance on Maryland’s state assessments is where this school presents its most serious challenges. In mathematics, proficiency rates across all three grade levels are very low. By the time students reach eighth grade, no tested student scored at the proficient level or above on the MCAP math assessment. In English language arts, proficiency rates are higher than in math but still below a majority: roughly two in five sixth graders met the bar, while the share dropped to about one in three in seventh grade and below one in three in eighth. On the eighth-grade science assessment (MISA), the proficiency rate was also low, and in social studies, it was similar. These results indicate that a large portion of the student body is not meeting grade-level academic benchmarks. A parent considering this school would want to learn directly from the school about what academic interventions, tutoring, and targeted support are in place, especially in mathematics, where the numbers are most stark.
The school offers no special designations such as magnet or charter status, and data on course access, staffing ratios, and discipline were not provided. There were no programs listed, so it is unclear what elective or enrichment offerings exist beyond the core curriculum. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes to report.
For a family thinking about Matthew Henson Middle School, the environment is that of a mid-sized, majority-Black middle school in a town with a strong military-affiliation presence and limited local retail. The academic data point to substantial room for improvement, and the absence of other reported metrics makes it harder to gauge the full picture of student support. A family whose child is performing at or above grade level may find the school does not offer advanced coursework tracked in this data, and a family whose child needs extra help should ask about intervention programs. The community itself offers a quiet, small-town setting with outdoor recreation and a short drive to Washington, D.C., but the school’s academic results are a serious consideration.
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