The top reported proficiency rate is 20% in Math. The lowest is 15% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Hartshorne Ms
Hartshorne MS serves students in grades six through eight in the small, rural city of Hartshorne, Oklahoma. The school is part of Hartshorne Public Schools, a district that also operates an elementary and a high school within the town. Hartshorne itself began as a coal mining company town and has seen a long-term population decline tied to the industry’s contraction, settling into a modest population base. Housing values in the area are well below both the state and national averages, reflecting the community’s economic context.
The middle school’s enrollment is small for a grade band this size. A significant majority of students are American Indian or Alaska Native, with a substantial White minority and smaller shares of students identifying as two or more races, Hispanic, Asian, and Black. Information on the share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals, students with disabilities, and English learners is not reported in the available data, so a parent may want to ask the school directly for those figures.
On state assessments, Hartshorne MS’s performance is a soft spot. In math, proficiency rates varied by grade: roughly a quarter of sixth graders and three in ten seventh graders met the state’s proficient or above benchmark, but only about one in twenty eighth graders did. In English language arts, seventh grade showed about two in ten students proficient, eighth grade about one in ten, and sixth grade results were suppressed under state reporting rules. Eighth grade science results were also suppressed. The school’s overall proficiency, averaged across tested subjects and grades, sits below the midpoint when compared with the other sixteen districts in Pittsburg County. A parent considering this school may want to discuss intervention and support programs with the administration, especially for the eighth grade cohort where performance drops markedly.
The locale brief describes Hartshorne as having limited commercial activity and walkability, with civic life centered on the public library, historic churches, and an annual Independence Day celebration. The school likely occupies its own campus within the town’s small footprint. No major recent changes or strategic initiatives were found for the district; the available data does not indicate any recent bond issues, program expansions, or leadership shifts that would affect the school.
Because Hartshorne MS does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report. Data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing, and course access is also absent from the provided materials, leaving a partial picture of the school environment. Families will want to visit the school and speak with staff to get a fuller sense of daily operations and student support. The school’s small size could mean more individualized attention, though the test results suggest that academic challenges are real and uneven across grade levels. The community’s economic base is limited, and the area is not experiencing growth, which may factor into a family’s long-term outlook. For parents weighing this option against other schools in Pittsburg County, the proficiency comparison indicates that a number of other districts post higher results, but the specific fit will depend on a child’s needs and the kind of small-town, rural setting a family is seeking.
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