Oakland Middle School, Columbia MO

Original Research by School Decision on Oakland Middle School

Oakland Middle School is a regular public school in Columbia, serving grades six through eight as part of the Columbia 93 district. The student body is moderately sized for a middle school, and the school draws from a range of neighborhoods in a growing Midwestern college town where education and healthcare anchor the local economy. A substantial share of students come from low-income households, reflected in the free-or-reduced-price lunch qualification rate.

On state assessments, Oakland’s performance is below the midpoint among Boone County districts, placing overall proficiency in the bottom quartile of that group. In math, the proportion of students scoring proficient or above varies notably by grade, with seventh graders posting a stronger showing than sixth graders, and eighth graders at a considerably lower level. English language arts results follow a similar pattern: the share reaching proficiency is modest in sixth grade, rises somewhat in seventh, then declines in eighth. Science results for eighth graders are similarly low. Across tested subjects and grades, fewer than a third of students meet the state’s proficiency benchmark in most cases. For any family weighing academic outcomes, these figures are a central consideration, and a parent may want to look into what academic supports the school offers for students not yet at grade level and how the school addresses the dip in eighth-grade performance.

The student body is racially and ethnically diverse. White students make up the largest single group, followed by Black students, Hispanic students, and students who identify with two or more races. Smaller shares of Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students round out the enrollment. The school does not report the share of students receiving special education services or the share classified as English learners, so those dimensions of support are not visible in the available data.

Columbia itself is the fastest-growing municipality in Missouri, situated between St. Louis and Kansas City at the crossroads of major highways. The University of Missouri, MU Health Care, and other large employers drive a robust job market, and the city’s downtown is walkable and culturally active. Housing values and rents have risen in line with the region’s growth, and mortgage rates nationally are elevated, making affordability a practical question for families moving into the area.

Columbia 93, the district, has made several recent changes that affect Oakland’s context. Voters approved a bond package for facility upgrades including safety improvements, HVAC work, and classroom renovations, with projects running through 2028. The district adopted a new elementary literacy curriculum grounded in the science of reading, which will eventually shape the skills of students entering middle school. Boundary adjustments took effect for some elementary schools in 2024-2025, so family catchment patterns may have shifted. A 1:1 technology initiative now provides a Chromebook for every student in grades six through twelve, a resource that directly touches Oakland’s classrooms.

No data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, or staffing is available, and the school’s course offerings are not described in the record. For a family looking for a middle school in a growing university city that serves a diverse and economically mixed population, Oakland fits that description. The academic results, however, are persistently below the county average, and that pattern warrants careful exploration with the school about interventions and supports.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 624%

School 24% · District 47% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 735%

School 35% · District 45% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 812%

School 12% · District 29% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 622%

School 22% · District 40% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 730%

School 30% · District 45% · ▼ 15 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 824%

School 24% · District 45% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Science

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 47% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

This schoolCOLUMBIA 93, 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-income15%Higher-income41%27 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income19%Higher-income48%30 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income11%Higher-income52%41 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income15%Higher-income48%32 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income23%Higher-income54%32 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income6%Higher-income30%24 pp gap