The top reported proficiency rate is 42% in English language arts. The lowest is 21% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Motley-staples Middle School
Motley-Staples Middle School serves students in grades five through eight in the Staples-Motley School District, a district that draws from the small central Minnesota cities of Staples and Motley. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and it sits within Todd County. Staples itself is a small city that originated as a sawmill town and now has a mix of manufacturing, healthcare, and education as its economic base. Employers like 3M and Lakewood Health System anchor the local economy, and the town sees a notable number of in-commuters, suggesting it functions as a modest regional employment center. The built environment is classic small-town, with older housing stock and a traditional downtown corridor, and the city is experiencing slow, modest growth with some newer construction. The district's middle school is located within the city, and the overall community feels compact and centralized.
The student body at the middle school is a group of about that size for its grade band, enrolling roughly a few hundred students across four grade levels. Demographically, the school is predominantly white, with small numbers of students identifying as two or more races, Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that economic need is a factor for many families. Data on the share of students with an Individualized Education Program and English learners was not available in the source material, which a parent may want to ask the school about directly.
On state assessments, academic performance varies by subject and grade level. In math, proficiency rates range from roughly a third of students meeting the standard in fifth grade to just over half in eighth grade, with rates in sixth and seventh grades falling in between. In English language arts, proficiency rates across grades five through eight cluster around two-fifths, with fifth grade showing the highest rate and sixth grade the lowest. Science results are available for grades five and eight, with a quarter of fifth graders and a smaller share of eighth graders reaching proficiency. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages performance across tested subjects and grades, places it below the midpoint when compared with other districts in Todd County. The comparison set includes four other Todd County districts, and the index values for the group cluster within a range that is relatively close together. The middle school sits slightly below the median of that group.
Only one year of assessment data was available for this school, so there is no multi-year trend to examine. The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report, and chronic absenteeism data was also not available. No information about program offerings such as Advanced Placement, career pathways, or dual-credit opportunities was provided. A parent seeking details about the school’s curriculum, elective options, or course pathways would need to reach out to the school directly. We looked for recent district-level changes that would affect families — such as referendums, curriculum shifts, or property tax developments — but found little of lasting impact to report.
For a family considering this school, the academic profile shows a range of outcomes with some grade-level variability. The school’s middle grades setting means it is a transitional environment for students between elementary and high school. The community is a small, slow-growing town with a working-class economic base and a central downtown that houses civic institutions. The housing market is relatively affordable compared with state and national benchmarks. This is a school that fits a family looking for a small-town public middle school with a largely homogeneous student population and a moderate economic need profile, where academic performance overall trails the top of the local county comparison group.
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