Serena Middle School, Serena IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Serena Middle School

Serena Middle School is a small rural middle school serving grades five through eight in an unincorporated farming community in LaSalle County. The enrollment is small, with roughly fifty to fifty-seven students in each grade and a total population of about one hundred ninety students. The school's student body is predominantly white, with a modest representation of Hispanic students and a small number of students identifying as two or more races. No specific data on free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility or special populations such as English learners and students with individualized education programs was available.

The school's academic performance shows a marked variation by grade and subject. In English language arts, fifth-grade students perform well, with proficiency close to four-fifths of students meeting grade-level standards. Sixth- and seventh-grade results are more moderate, with proficiency near one-half and about five-eighths respectively. Eighth-grade proficiency drops substantially, to around one-quarter of students. Math proficiency is stronger in the earlier grades tested, with about two-thirds of fifth graders proficient, but declines sharply in the middle grades. Sixth-grade math proficiency falls to one-quarter of students, seventh-grade rises somewhat to near two-fifths, and eighth-grade drops to around one-eighth proficient. In science, tested at grades five and eight, proficiency is low across both, under two-fifths of students. Participation rates across assessments are high, typically near or at full participation, which indicates the school is testing the vast majority of its enrollment. This data should be read with the caveat that Illinois changed its proficiency cut scores in 2024-25, making year-to-year comparisons uncertain.

When compared to the other districts in LaSalle County, Serena Middle School's overall proficiency index places it at the median, neither above nor below the typical county performance. This suggests the school's students perform in line with peers across the county's public school offerings.

No information on programs, course offerings, staffing, attendance, or discipline was available. The school is part of Serena CUSD 2, a small district headquartered in the village and serving the towns of Serena, Earlville, and Sheridan. No recent major changes in district policy, staffing, or curriculum were identified through available sources. A parent may want to look into whether the school offers any specialized support or intervention in mathematics and science, particularly in the higher middle grades where proficiency declines noticeably, and to ask the district directly about tutoring resources, summer programs, or math remediation initiatives that might address these trends.

Housing in the area is affordable relative to state and national benchmarks, with median home values in the Serena ZIP code in the mid-range for Illinois. The community is entirely rural and car-dependent, with minimal walkability and few commercial amenities. Schools are the dominant civic institution in an otherwise agricultural setting characterized by quiet residential streets and homes built mostly before the 1960s.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 568%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Grade 624%

School 24% · District 24%

even with state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 744%

School 44% · District 44%

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 814%

School 14% · District 14%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 578%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 27 pts above county median

Grade 652%

School 52% · District 52%

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 763%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 827%

School 27% · District 27%

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Science

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 36%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

This schoolSerena CUSD 2, 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.