Blackstone Valley

01:24 PM EDT on Monday, June 6, 2005

Middle school students are notoriously difficult learners. Often, they are so wrapped up in early adolescent developmental changes that school can seem almost secondary. At Woonsocket Middle School, that challenge is compounded by tougher-than-normal economic circumstances and a school that's fallen to bickering. The result is a firestorm of frustrations and an elaborate blame game where nobody learns much at all.

Woonsocket Middle School figures are in bold. In some instances, data refers to all Woonsocket students. (State figures are in parentheses.)

School population

• 1,551 students

• Ethnicity:

62% (71%) White

22% (16%) Hispanic

9% (8%) Black

7% (3%) Asian

• 32% (16%) live at or below the poverty level

• 61% (33%) are eligible for subsidized lunch programs

• $9,176 ($11,046) spent per pupil, all commitments; the third lowest in the state

• Parents' highest level of education:

10% (14%) completed some high school, but did not receive a diploma

23% (28%) graduated from high school

16% (18%) had some college or technical education after high school

23% (16%) received a bachelor's degree from college

28% did not specify level of education

District data

• 46% (30%) are children of single-parent families

• 15 per 1,000 (10 per 1,000) students have incarcerated parents

• 13 per 1,000 (7 per 1,000) students have been abused or neglected

• $30,819 ($42,090) Median household income

Classroom challenges

• 92% (93%) of time the average student was present during the required 180 instructional days

• 85% (86%) of students enrolled entered at the beginning of the year and stayed through the end of the school year

• 3% (6%) of students receive ESL/bilingual education services

• 14:1 (12:1, middle schools) is the student/teacher ratio

SOURCES: Information Works! School Year 2003-2004; Rhode Island Kids Count; SALT Survey 2004; U.S. Census