The top reported proficiency rate is 32% in English language arts. The lowest is 5% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Dwight D. Eisenhower Middle
Dwight D. Eisenhower Middle School serves grades six through eight in Laurel, a largely residential city in Prince George’s County. Laurel was founded as a mill town on the Patuxent River and grew into a commuter hub between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore after the railroad arrived. Its historic Main Street anchors civic life, and the school sits in a community that mixes older mill-era housing near the river with postwar suburban development. The city has a MARC train station on the Camden Line, a fossil park that has been called one of the most prolific in the eastern United States, and a museum in a renovated mill worker’s home. This is a public school, not a charter or magnet, and it is part of the Prince George’s County Public Schools district.
The student body is very large for a middle school. The enrollment is heavily Hispanic and Black, with small shares of white, Asian, and multiracial students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a marker that the school serves a population with high economic need. Data on the share of students with an individualized education plan or who are English learners was not available from the sources used.
State test results from the 2024-2025 school year show that proficiency rates in math are low across all three grade levels. In sixth grade, a small fraction of students scored proficient on the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program; in seventh grade, the figure was modestly higher but still low; in eighth grade it was again small. In English language arts, results were higher but still well below half of students scoring proficient: roughly a quarter of sixth graders, more than a third of seventh graders, and about three in ten eighth graders. On the eighth-grade science assessment, a small share of students met the proficiency bar, and on the eighth-grade social studies test, a similarly small share did. Only a single year of state testing data was available, so there is no trend to assess. A parent may want to look into the school’s approach to math instruction and what support is available for students who are below grade level, given the pattern across all three tested grades.
No data were available on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, or course access at this school, so these dimensions cannot be described. The school’s neighbor comparison set could not yield a comparison because only one district was present in the cohort. That means there is no external benchmark against other Prince George’s County middle schools to provide context for these proficiency figures.
The district, Prince George’s County Public Schools, approved an operating budget with an increase over the prior year that put additional funding toward teacher salaries and student support services. It also implemented a district-wide literacy initiative adopting evidence-based reading curriculum aligned with the science of reading, a lasting change that affects how reading is taught across elementary grades. A boundary review conducted in 2024 to address overcrowding proposed changes that could affect school assignments for the 2025-2026 school year.
This is a school where academic proficiency numbers are a clear soft spot, particularly in math and science, and where the student population is large and economically diverse. Families considering Eisenhower Middle should expect a setting with significant need and should investigate what targeted interventions, tutoring, or enrichment are available, as well as what the school’s progress looks like on the district’s literacy and other academic initiatives. The surrounding community of Laurel offers historic character, transit connections, and a mix of older and newer residential areas, which may appeal to families looking for a suburban setting with easy access to Washington and Baltimore.
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