Designed by architect E.C. Hosford and completed in 1928, with east and west additions in 1937, this school replaced a wood frame structure at present day Kathleen Road and Central Avenue. It served grades 1-12, the first time grades 9-12 were offered in northwest Polk County, and in 1932 its first six students graduated with a 12th grade education. It operated as a "strawberry school," holding classes from April through December so students could help harvest strawberry crops between January and March, a practice discontinued in 1952. In 1950, grades 1-6 moved to the new Kathleen Elementary immediately north of the site, and in 1961, grades 10-12 moved to the new Kathleen Senior High School on Memorial Boulevard, leaving grades 7-9 here as Kathleen Junior High School. In 1993, it became Kathleen Middle School, serving grades 6-8. On October 18, 2019, a tornado caused significant damage, but the community and the School Board of Polk County rallied to restore the historic building. School trustees in 1928 were Kenzie C. Cockrell, Dallas Prine, and Thomas L. Stalvey, and the principal was S.L. Collins, Sr. The class of 1932, the first graduating class, included Stephen A. Cooper, salutatorian; Rosemary Cox Bridges Mudge; Seeny Fields Risk; Nellie Harrison Gandy, valedictorian; W.T. "Tubby" Harrison Jr.; and Henry O. Prine.