The top reported proficiency rate is 40% in Science. The lowest is 20% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Ridgeview Jr High School
Ridgeview Jr High School is a small public junior high serving grades six through eight in Colfax, a small rural village in eastern McLean County. The school enrolls a small student body drawn from Colfax and surrounding tiny neighboring towns. The racial composition is predominantly white, with a small Hispanic student population and a handful of multiracial students; demographic data on free-or-reduced-price lunch, students with IEPs, and English learners were not available.
State testing data shows that Ridgeview Jr High is performing well below the county median across both mathematics and English language arts in the grade bands it serves. In sixth grade, fewer than one in ten students met proficiency in math, while fewer than one in five met proficiency in ELA. Seventh grade showed some improvement, with roughly one in three students proficient in math and one in four in ELA. Eighth grade math proficiency stood at one in five, while ELA improved to two in five. Testing participation was high and consistent. Science results were available only for eighth grade, where two in five students met proficiency. The school's overall proficiency index across tested subjects places it in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in McLean County.
State testing data showed cut-score changes in recent years, so year-to-year comparisons are not fully reliable at this point. Data on specific test scores, trend lines, special education enrollment rates, and English learner populations were not made available. These gaps are typical for schools in this size range and do not reflect weak performance documentation so much as the smaller volume of students being tested.
Colfax itself is on a slow population decline. It is a compact village of mostly residential streets with a small commercial core, surrounded by agricultural land. Younger residents often drive to nearby Bloomington-Normal for shopping and entertainment. Local employment centers on agriculture-related businesses, the schools themselves, and banking; many residents commute to the Bloomington-Normal metro. Housing values in the area are modest relative to the state and national benchmarks. Mortgage rates and local economic conditions align with national patterns.
A significant piece of news for families considering the district is that Ridgeview CUSD 19 is undertaking a major expansion of its Colfax facilities with substantial completion targeted by summer 2027. The expansion is funded through a bond issuance and will be added to existing school structures. Because the district is expanding rather than building new, no voter referendum was required. The district has indicated its tax rate will remain consistent with previous years as older debt is retired, meaning upgraded facilities are arriving without an expected property-tax increase.
Parents evaluating this school may want to look further into the reasons for the current performance gap with county peers and what academic interventions or curriculum changes are underway. The upcoming facility expansion may create momentum for instructional changes as well. State assessment data limitations mean a full picture of student growth or subgroup performance cannot be drawn from available sources.
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