The top reported proficiency rate is 18% in Science. The lowest is 5% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Nowata Ms
Nowata Middle School serves sixth through eighth grade in the town of Nowata, a small rural county seat in northeastern Oklahoma. The town sits along the Verdigris River, anchored by a historic courthouse and a forty-bed health center, with a population that has been in long-term decline since its mid-twentieth-century peak. The local economy was historically tied to oil and gas, a sector that once gave the area a reputation as one of the world’s largest shallow oil fields, and government, education, and healthcare remain steady employers. The district’s footprint is compact, integrated into the small-town grid where US highways serve as main streets.
The student body of roughly one hundred and sixty-five students is almost evenly split between white and American Indian or Alaska Native students, each making up about a third of the enrollment, with the remaining third identifying as two or more races. A much smaller share of students are Hispanic, and a few are Asian or Black. The school does not report data on free or reduced-price meal eligibility, so a family trying to gauge economic need will not find that information here, though the community context suggests a modest overall income profile. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was also absent from the available records.
State testing results from the most recent school year show proficiency rates that are markedly low across all three tested subjects. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or above was in the single digits in each grade, falling from roughly the mid-single digits in sixth grade down to two percent in eighth grade. English language arts results were similarly low, with eighth grade reaching ten percent, the highest of any tested grade in that subject. Science, tested only in eighth grade, came in at less than one in five students meeting the proficiency bar. These figures placed the school in the bottom quartile among districts in Nowata County for overall academic performance across tested subjects and grades.
Oklahoma changed its cut scores for math and English language arts in this testing cycle, which makes direct comparisons with prior years unreliable. The state assessment is called the OSTP and is a regular, standards-aligned test. Families should be aware that very low proficiency numbers like these typically mean that the majority of students are not yet on grade level, and a parent considering this school would want to ask what academic interventions and supports are available.
The school enrollment is small for this grade band, with about one hundred and sixty-five students distributed across three grades. No information was available on course offerings, extracurricular programs, teacher experience, class size, discipline rates, or chronic absenteeism. The district brief turned up no recent public reports about changes to programming, staffing, or facilities, so families looking for a clear sense of current initiatives will need to contact the school directly.
Nowata Middle School, as the only middle school in the Nowata district, is the default public option for local families. Its academic profile is one of very low tested proficiency, and the absence of data on student support services, staffing, and programming leaves a significant gap for anyone trying to evaluate the full picture. The town itself is small and quiet, with a shrinking population and limited recent development, so the school serves a community that is stable but not growing. A parent moving to the area or choosing among options would benefit from a direct visit and conversations with current families and staff to learn what the school offers beyond its state test results.
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