My DD is now 17 years old. She was in 7th grade when this happened.
Changing schools absolutely opened her up to a whole different set of friends. I second what you were told. This group (small school) were terrible from a very young age, they were always difficult. Honestly, the apple does not fall far, you could see it in the parents as well for many of them. I had no idea if it was the right thing to do or not, and we went to counseling for quite a while until the counselor actually told me that their opinion was to switch schools. My DD was SO relieved.
Hope this helps friend!
It's useful to hear Hopeful that you experienced a lot of the same with your older DD and that if we decide to change schools, it's not akin to running away-- Can I ask how your DD is now?