Russell I Doig Middle School, Trumansburg NY

Original Research by School Decision on Russell I Doig Middle School

Russell I Doig Middle School serves grades five through eight in Trumansburg, a small Finger Lakes village that functions as a bedroom community to Ithaca while maintaining its own artistic identity around a compact, walkable downtown. The school sits on a rural campus away from Main Street, part of the Trumansburg Central School District's consolidated facilities.

The school's academic profile shows mixed results across subjects and grade levels. In math, proficiency ranges from about half of fifth graders to roughly four in five seventh graders, with sixth and eighth grade proficiency rates in the mid to upper range. English language arts follows a similar pattern, with fifth grade at roughly half proficiency, then rising sharply to about four in five sixth graders and remaining in the mid-to-upper range thereafter. Science proficiency in fifth grade sits around mid-range, with eighth graders reaching approximately three in four proficiency. Across tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile relative to other districts in Tompkins County.

The early-grade performance dip, particularly in fifth-grade math and language arts, is notable. A parent may want to discuss with the school whether this reflects the transition from elementary instruction, the specific cohort, or instructional approaches at entry to middle school. Notably, the district recently shifted its elementary reading instruction toward the Science of Reading approach, a change that may influence how fifth graders arrive at the middle school in coming years. Data on special education enrollment and English learner populations were not available, leaving unclear whether support services are meeting needs across diverse learner profiles.

The school enrolls roughly mid-sized cohorts for a middle school, with about equal representation across all four grades. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly white, reflecting Trumansburg's demographic composition. Precise counts on special populations were not reported.

Housing in the Trumansburg area is moderately priced compared to state and national benchmarks, and the village is experiencing real growth. Village Grove, a recently completed mixed-income development on the south side, delivered affordable rental units and is adding market-rate homes, signaling modest residential expansion that may affect future school enrollment. The district voter-approved a substantial capital improvement project in October 2025 covering infrastructure, air conditioning, sidewalks for student safety, and athletic and arts facility accessibility, with most funding from state aid and reserve funds carrying no new tax burden. This multi-year facilities work will reshape the buildings families use.

The school's test participation rates are generally strong, though the eighth-grade science and math participation rates are notably lower, suggesting either smaller tested cohorts in those grades or differences in course-taking patterns. State testing results for social studies were not available at a recent year, so a parent cannot assess current performance in that subject.

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Academic performance

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

New York Regents Exams

2 courses reported · 2024-25

End-of-course exams required for a New York Regents diploma. Each row shows the cohort size and the share of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

Course	Students tested	% proficient
Math	32	100.0%
Science	32	94.0%

Math

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 58% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 678%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 33 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 782%

School 82% · District 81% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 29 pts above state median

Grade 878%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 41 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 555%

School 55% · District 54% · ▲ 1 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 682%

School 82% · District 82%

▲ 37 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Grade 776%

School 76% · District 75% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 29 pts above state median

Grade 873%

School 73% · District 73%

▲ 24 pts above state median

Science

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 56% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 875%

School 75% · District 75%

▲ 42 pts above state median

Social studies

Grade 579%

School 79% · district not reported

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 893%

School 93% · district not reported

▲ 14 pts above state median

This schoolTRUMANSBURG CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, 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 5Lower-income43%Higher-income60%17 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income87%Higher-income81%6 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income56%Higher-income84%27 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income57%Higher-income81%25 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income38%Higher-income68%30 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income67%Higher-income82%16 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income65%Higher-income89%24 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income63%Higher-income94%31 pp gap