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Harold B Dawson Middle School

Public Grades 5-8

1114^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,126 Illinois Middle Schools

Better than 1% of Illinois middle schools

Summary

Harold B Dawson Middle School in West Peoria serves 331 students in grades 5–8 and is part of the Peoria area’s large public-school community. Its most urgent concern is mathematics: in 2025–2026, just 5% of students were proficient, the lowest reported result among nearby schools.

Overall achievement is below both district and state results, with math the sharpest gap. ELA proficiency was 23% at Harold B Dawson Middle School, compared with 32% in Peoria School District 150 and 56% statewide; math was 5%, versus 20% in the district and 40% statewide. Nearby-school comparisons also put Dawson near the bottom in ELA: its 23% was higher only than Sterling Middle School’s 15%. Sixth-grade ELA is a relative bright spot at 32%, above the district’s 28%, though below the state’s 59%. Attendance is another concern: chronic absenteeism was 39%, higher than the district’s 30% and state’s 24%, and the highest reported among nearby schools.

Dawson’s ELA proficiency rose from 14% in 2023–2024 to 23% in 2025–2026, but the gap with the state widened; math moved only from 4% to 5%. SchoolDigger ranked the school in the 1st percentile statewide for 2025–2026, with 0 stars, down from the 6th percentile the prior year; the district ranks in the 7th percentile, also with 0 stars. The student-teacher ratio was 15.7 in 2024–2025, the third-highest among nearby schools with data. In that school year, 92% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible, the highest rate among nearby schools reporting the same measure. One notable subgroup result: SchoolDigger placed the school in the 13th percentile for serving Disabled Students in 2024–2025, above its overall 6th-percentile standing, though that subgroup percentile had fallen from 31 in 2022–2023. Grade-level math comparisons are unavailable because the state suppressed those results.

331

Students ?

15.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,884

Per pupil spending ?

92.1%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

97%

Measles protection (all grades) (2025-26)

2708 W Rohmann Ave
West Peoria, IL 61604-4921

(309) 672-6506

District: Peoria School District 150

Students who attend Harold B Dawson Middle School usually attend:

High:

Peoria High School

Feeder schools for Harold B Dawson Middle School:

Elementary:

Whittier Primary School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

66.8%

Two or more races:

13.3%

White:

11.2%

See top rated Illinois middle schools

Compare Harold B Dawson Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 7th percentile in 2016 → 1st in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Illinois average (15% vs 49% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (1st percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (39% vs 24% Illinois)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school15%

District avg27%

Illinois avg49%

1,114^th of 1,126

Illinois public middle schools ?

Bottom 1%▼ down 6 pts since 2016

From bottom 7% (2016) to bottom 1% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Illinois Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 6Middle Schools in the Peoria School District 150

688^th of 738Peoria School District 150 among Illinois districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2026	3.5	1114 of 1126	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	11.3	1288 of 1368	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.4	1277 of 1363	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.8	1210 of 1367	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	11.6	1332 of 1369	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.1	1152 of 1241	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.7	1252 of 1356	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.9	1215 of 1293	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	14.7	1159 of 1293	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	13.0	1204 of 1294	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	18.5	1101 of 1302	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	14.1	1195 of 1322	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	20.7	1137 of 1367	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	18.2	1188 of 1365	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	42.9	881 of 1344	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2010	27.2	1050 of 1327	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	25.5	1048 of 1318	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	25.5	1030 of 1293	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	26.6	1016 of 1287	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	37.8	899 of 1272	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	36.3	841 of 1209	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2004	61.2	538 of 1204	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2003	54.9	602 of 1185	49.2%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2026	8.2	213 of 224	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	25.4	473 of 574	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	21.0	502 of 548	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	26.0	474 of 569	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.3	541 of 573	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	25.3	339 of 385	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.1	500 of 565	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.2	482 of 511	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	22.8	605 of 694	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.2	528 of 639	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.9	466 of 674	30.9%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	11.6	1163 of 1248	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.4	1168 of 1251	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.4	1158 of 1275	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.0	1231 of 1286	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	12.2	969 of 1017	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.1	1132 of 1276	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.6	1152 of 1226	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2026	6.0	773 of 788	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.6	1157 of 1229	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.5	1141 of 1219	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.0	1086 of 1234	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.8	1187 of 1221	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	19.8	920 of 1019	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.7	1133 of 1217	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.3	1102 of 1161	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	11.7	1203 of 1271	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.4	1189 of 1264	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.3	1104 of 1292	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.6	1234 of 1286	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.5	989 of 1048	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.9	1228 of 1296	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.7	1131 of 1223	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	13.3	181 of 204	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.1	169 of 184	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.3	176 of 194	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.6	189 of 195	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.0	154 of 179	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.7	154 of 164	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	16.7	756 of 812	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.7	718 of 802	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.4	683 of 805	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.9	654 of 781	16.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	25.6	501 of 548	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	27.5	650 of 792	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.8	496 of 602	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2023	29.1	653 of 895	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	9.0	868 of 898	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	23.9	722 of 905	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	19.7	764 of 889	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

White (2023)27th percentile+16 vs school

Disabled (2025)13th percentile+7 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)11th percentile+5 vs school

Special Education (2025)7th percentile~ school

Female (2025)7th percentile~ school

Male (2025)5th percentile~ school

African American (2026)5th percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)2nd percentile~ school

By subject vs Illinois (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts22%-34 vs state

Science16%-34 vs state

Mathematics5%-35 vs state

★

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Schools Near Harold B Dawson Middle School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				ISA Science (2026)		IAR English Language Arts (2026)						IAR Mathematics (2026)						Vaccination (2025-26)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2026)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISA Science 5th Grade	ISA Science 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 4th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 5th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 6th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 7th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts All Grades	IAR Mathematics 4th Grade	IAR Mathematics 5th Grade	IAR Mathematics 6th Grade	IAR Mathematics 7th Grade	IAR Mathematics 8th Grade	IAR Mathematics All Grades	Vaccination: Measles protection (all grades)	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Harold B Dawson Middle School	Public	5-8	2708 W Rohmann Ave	West Peoria	61604	Peoria County	Peoria School District 150	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 672-6506	331	21	15.7	92.1%	37 (11.2%)	221 (66.8%)	24 (7.3%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	44 (13.3%)	3.5	1114^th of 1126 public middle schools	1.1%		11.3	1288^th of 1368 public middle schools	5.8%	174	15.3	16.9		15.3	32.4	16.3	27.2	22.5						4.7	97%		$14,884	$1,595	$13,290
Sterling Middle School	Public	5-8	2315 N Sterling Ave	Peoria	61604	Peoria County	Peoria School District 150	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 672-6557	374	25	14.7	88.5%	31 (8.3%)	276 (73.8%)	24 (6.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (11.2%)	1	1125^th of 1126 public middle schools	0.1%		9	1331^st of 1368 public middle schools	2.7%	206	18.2	15.8		22.4	11.2		16.5	15.1						4.9	97.2%		$15,213	$1,465	$13,749
Pleasant Valley Intermediate School	Public	4-8	3314 W Richwoods Blvd	Peoria	61604	Peoria County	Pleasant Valley School District 62	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 679-0634	166	18	9.2	—	50 (30.1%)	88 (53.0%)	4 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (13.9%)	46.8	567^th of 1126 public middle schools	49.6%		29.9	936^th of 1368 public middle schools	31.6%	369	34.8	48.3	45.9	41.3	43.2	50.0	86.2	51.4					41.4	25.8	98.9%		$21,668	$1,973	$19,694
Peoria County Detention Center 6-8	Public	4-8	223 N Maxwell Rd	Peoria	61604	Peoria County	Norwood Education Service District 63	No	(n/a)	No	No	(309) 634-4200	0	0		—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Norwood Elementary School	Public	5-8	6521 W Farmington Rd	Peoria	61604	Peoria County	Norwood Education Service District 63	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 676-3683	150	12	12.5	56.7%	114 (76.0%)	9 (6.0%)	12 (8.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (10.0%)	61.7	381^st of 1126 public middle schools	66.2%		36.7	828^th of 1368 public middle schools	39.5%	447	56.8	47.2		48.6	72.5	58.8	80.6	65.3		37.8	42.5		52.6	40.3	97.4%		$24,346	$3,265	$21,081
Von Steuben Middle School	Public	5-8	801 E Forrest Hill Ave	Peoria	61603	Peoria County	Peoria School District 150	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 672-6561	266	16	16.3	87.6%	36 (13.5%)	161 (60.5%)	22 (8.3%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	43 (16.2%)	7.7	1066^th of 1126 public middle schools	5.3%		13.7	1236^th of 1368 public middle schools	9.6%	170	14.9	28.3			24.3	28.1	43.3	25.4						5.4	97.9%		$14,959	$1,263	$13,696
Central Junior High School	Public	6-8	601 Taylor St	East Peoria	61611	Tazewell County	East Peoria School District 86	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 427-5200	434	39	11.0	46.5%	365 (84.1%)	19 (4.4%)	24 (5.5%)	5 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.6%)	20.4	910^th of 1126 public middle schools	19.2%		45.6	685^th of 1368 public middle schools	49.9%	225		46.3			42.0	38.4	44.5	41.6			26.1	29.5	19.0	24.9	98.8%		$21,278	$787	$20,491
Reservoir Gifted School	Public	5-8	3706 N Grand Blvd	Peoria	61614	Peoria County	Peoria School District 150	No	(n/a)	No	No	(309) 672-6563	308	16	18.9	35.1%	167 (54.2%)	51 (16.6%)	37 (12.0%)	8 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (14.6%)	98.5	8^th of 1126 public middle schools	99.3%		98.9	4^th of 1368 public middle schools	99.7%	4	93.9	100.0		98.8	96.2	96.2	98.7	97.5		96.3	89.7	94.9	89.9	92.7	97.8%		$12,952	$561	$12,390
Mark W Bills Middle School	Public	5-8	6001 N Frostwood Pkwy	Peoria	61615	Peoria County	Peoria School District 150	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 693-4437	258	23	11.4	74.8%	54 (20.9%)	156 (60.5%)	21 (8.1%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (10.1%)	15.3	973^rd of 1126 public middle schools	13.6%		19.3	1130^th of 1368 public middle schools	17.4%	157	45.0	36.9		67.2	29.8	36.2	47.8	45.7		31.1			23.9	19.8	99.3%		$17,694	$1,983	$15,711
Parkview Junior High School	Public	5-8	800 Groveland St	Creve Coeur	61610	Tazewell County	Creve Coeur School District 76	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(309) 698-3610	193	19	10.1	78.2%	162 (83.9%)	10 (5.2%)	12 (6.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (4.7%)								(n/a)	47.5	19.2		55.0	26.3			29.5		30.0				16.9	97.7%		$21,014	$1,774	$19,240

Frequently Asked Questions about Harold B Dawson Middle School

What district is Harold B Dawson Middle School in?

Peoria School District 150

What is the racial makeup of Harold B Dawson Middle School?

Students at Harold B Dawson Middle School are 67% African American, 13% Two or more races, 11% White, 7% Hispanic.

Is Harold B Dawson Middle School a good school?

Harold B Dawson Middle School ranks in the bottom 1.1% of Illinois middle schools.

What high school do graduates of Harold B Dawson Middle School attend?

Students who attend Harold B Dawson Middle School usually go on to attend Peoria High School

How many students attend Harold B Dawson Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 331 students attended Harold B Dawson Middle School.

Rate Harold B Dawson Middle School!

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Latest Illinois data All new data »

2025–26 school spending dataNewOct 30, 2026

2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesNewOct 30, 2026

2025–26 ACT, IAR, ISA & PreACT Secure test scoresNewOct 30, 2026

2013–14 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois State Board of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.