The top reported proficiency rate is 76% in English language arts. The lowest is 57% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Washington Middle School
Washington Middle School serves grades five through eight in Washington, Illinois, a predominantly residential Peoria suburb. The school is located in Tazewell County, within the Washington School District 52. The building sits on North Main Street, part of a campus setting where schools operate as separate educational nodes rather than anchors of the downtown.
The school's academic picture is uneven, marked by strength in upper grades and a pronounced dip at entry. In seventh-grade English language arts, students perform at a notably high level, while eighth-grade English and eighth-grade science also show solid achievement. Sixth-grade math and seventh-grade math proficiency sit in the mid-range. The weak spot comes at fifth grade, where math proficiency is substantially lower than in all other tested grades, while fifth-grade English language arts and science both run lower than their upper-grade counterparts. This pattern suggests students entering the school face real academic challenges in the foundational year, though many catch up or benefit from middle-school instruction as they move through grades six, seven, and eight. Against other districts in Tazewell County, Washington Middle School's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile, a genuine strength for this region.
The school's enrollment is small, drawing roughly equal classes across its four grades. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with small numbers of Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial students; only a handful of students represent other backgrounds. Specific enrollment data on students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, English learners, and students with disabilities were not available, so a fuller picture of economic or language-based needs within the building cannot be drawn from the data provided. A parent may want to look into those details with the school directly.
Washington Middle School is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet program. It does not carry a Title I designation. State assessment data for third and fourth grades do not appear, likely because the school serves only grades five through eight and younger grades are tested elsewhere in the district system.
The district itself recently underwent significant change. In April 2025, Washington voters approved a substantial referendum to build a new Lincoln Grade School on the Washington Middle School campus, reversing a narrow 2023 failure. The current Lincoln facility is decades old and the district cited poor air quality and ventilation, limited accessibility, and cramped classrooms as reasons replacement made more sense than renovation. The bond passage will trigger lasting property tax increases; the district's rate, which had been among the lowest in the county, will move to the middle-to-upper range as the bonds are paid down over the coming years. Families considering this area should factor that tax impact into their housing costs.
The broader Washington community has been reshaped by recent events. A significant tornado struck in 2024, damaging or destroying hundreds of homes and triggering large-scale rebuilding. The town itself is growing, though 2024 estimates suggest the long suburban growth trajectory may be flattening. Housing values and demand remain active, with the area functioning as part of Peoria's labor market orbit, where employers include Caterpillar, OSF Healthcare, and the wider regional tech and industrial base. The historic Washington Square downtown still operates as a retail district, but schools and major civic facilities sit on separate campuses, connected mainly by the town's Recreation Trail system. For a family evaluating this school, the combination of solid upper-grade performance, an emerging facilities investment, and an active suburban housing market form the operational context.
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