Belvidere Central Middle School

Belvidere Central Middle School serves grades 6–8 and enrolls 911 students in Belvidere, Illinois, as part of Belvidere CUSD 100. Its 2025–2026 results show a mixed picture: it performs better than many nearby middle schools in English language arts (ELA) and math, but remains below state averages in both. The clearest concern is math, where 25% of students are proficient, 14 points below the state’s 40%.

Eighth-grade science is a bright spot: 52% of Central’s students are proficient, about 1 point above the state and 3 above the district. That ranks second among nearby schools with eighth-grade results, behind Roscoe Middle School. In ELA, Central’s 45% is below the state’s 56% but above the district’s 42% and the 41% average for nearby schools serving grades 6–8; it ranks third among those peers. Math is also above the local peer average—25% versus 19%—and ranks second, despite Central’s statewide shortfall. Within Central, grade 8 math is a particular weakness at 19%, compared with 30% in grade 7.

Scores have improved over three years: ELA rose 12 points, from 34% to 45%, and math increased 10 points, from 16% to 25%. State results also rose, however, and Central remains behind. SchoolDigger rates the school at the 25th percentile statewide with 1 star in 2025–2026; its percentile fell from 42 the year before even as ELA and math scores increased. The 2024–2025 student-teacher ratio was 12.2, lower than reported ratios at nearly all comparable schools, and 51% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible that year. SchoolDigger’s statewide rankings also indicate much weaker standing in how well Central serves Hispanic students (5th percentile) and Low Socio Economic Status Students (10th percentile) than its overall 25th-percentile standing.