Belleview Middle School, Belleview FL

Original Research by School Decision on Belleview Middle School

Belleview Middle School serves sixth through eighth graders on a campus along SE 36th Avenue, adjacent to Belleview High School, in the rural fringe of southern Marion County. The setting is quiet and campus-separated from Belleview's small historic downtown near Lake Lillian, so families should expect a car-dependent commute to and from school in a community that reads more suburban-rural than urban.

The school draws a sizeable student body for a middle school of its type. White students make up a majority of enrollment, with Hispanic students representing a substantial share and Black students a smaller but present portion, alongside smaller multiracial and other groups. Just over half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a community that spans working-class and middle-income households. Data on students with IEPs and English learners were not available in the payload, so parents with children in those populations may want to ask the school directly about support services.

On Florida's FAST assessments, the academic picture is mixed. In sixth grade, ELA and math proficiency rates are reasonably solid, with the majority of tested students meeting the bar in both subjects. Seventh grade results are close behind, still holding majority proficiency in both areas. Eighth grade, however, shows a meaningful drop, particularly in math, where fewer than half of students reach proficiency, and science falls in a similar range. ELA in eighth grade lands right around the midpoint. These patterns are worth a direct conversation with the school about what changes in the eighth-grade year and what academic supports are in place. Trend data across prior years was not available, so it is not clear whether these results represent improvement, decline, or a stable baseline.

The comparison framework available for this school covers only Marion County's single district, which means no peer-district ranking applies here.

The housing market in the Belleview zip code is meaningfully more affordable than the state average, with home values well below the Florida median, and the gap is wide enough that families priced out of larger Florida metros often find this area accessible. Home values have edged slightly lower year over year locally, while the state figure has also pulled back. Rental cost data for the immediate area was not in the payload. Marion County voters approved a half-cent sales tax in late 2024 dedicated to school construction and renovation, a response to the county's rapid population growth; the district has publicly reported plans for several new schools and additional wings over the coming years. Separately, a one-mill property tax renewal passed in 2022 funds teacher retention, school safety, arts, PE, library, and vocational programs through mid-2027. Both measures affect household costs and school resources directly.

Belleview itself is a small city that has grown steadily, partly pulled along by the Ocala metro's expansion. Publicly reported sources describe it as a community where newer subdivisions sit alongside older farmhouses and lakefront bungalows, with most commercial activity running along highway corridors rather than a walkable main street. Lake Lillian Park anchors civic life and offers accessible outdoor space. Most employment of scale is regional, in Ocala or The Villages, with a commute required for most professional or institutional jobs. The Marion County Public Library has a branch in Belleview with standard public computing and study resources.

Program offerings at the school itself were not included in the data provided, so the narrative cannot speak to electives, extracurriculars, or any specialized tracks. Graduation rate does not apply here because Belleview Middle serves only grades six through eight. Chronic absenteeism data were also not available.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 666%

School 66% · District 46% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 762%

School 62% · District 44% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 837%

School 37% · District 46% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 51% · ▲ 9 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 759%

School 59% · District 50% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 850%

School 50% · District 46% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Science

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 40% · ▲ 6 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

This schoolMARION, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income49%Higher-income70%21 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income52%Higher-income66%14 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income41%Higher-income59%18 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income53%Higher-income80%27 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income58%Higher-income68%10 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income34%Higher-income41%7 pp gap