The top reported proficiency rate is 14% in English language arts. The lowest is 12% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Forest Park Middle
Forest Park Middle is a regular public school serving students in grades six through eight as part of the Springfield public school district. The school is located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the largest city in western New England and the economic and cultural hub of the Pioneer Valley. Springfield is a city of historic architecture, major employers like MassMutual and Baystate Health, and civic anchors including the Basketball Hall of Fame and Forest Park. Recent revitalization efforts have included a casino development and the redevelopment of its Union Station transit hub. For a middle school family, this means an urban setting with access to museums, parks, and a dense network of services, though the city has also experienced economic challenges and a tornado recovery in the past.
The school’s enrollment is small for a middle school, with students spread roughly evenly across sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. The student body is diverse: a large majority of students are Hispanic, with a sizeable Black population and small shares of White, Asian, and multiracial students. No data was available on the share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, or on students with disabilities or English learner status, so a parent interested in those aspects of the support environment would need to ask the school directly. The school participates in state testing at full participation rates.
On the Massachusetts NextGen MCAS assessments, proficiency rates across tested subjects are low. In math, about one in every nine students scored proficient or above. In English language arts and in science, the share is slightly higher but still roughly one in seven. Social studies results for eighth graders are similar. These proficiency levels place the school in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Hampden County, meaning that overall academic performance is among the lower measured in that comparison group.
Looking at multi-year trends, the pattern has been one of decline from stronger levels earlier in the last decade. In English language arts, proficiency rates were roughly one-quarter of students in the 2016-17 school year, then dropped to about one-fifth in the following two years, and have since stabilized around one in seven or one in eight students meeting the standard. In math, a similar decline is visible: from roughly one-quarter proficient in the years before the pandemic to about one in ten by the most recent testing, with a slight uptick in the latest year. These trends suggest the school has not yet recovered to pre-pandemic performance levels.
No data was available on chronic absenteeism, discipline rates, or program offerings such as advanced courses, arts, or career pathways. Because this is a middle school, there is no graduation rate to report. Information about specific academic supports or enrichment programs was not provided, so a parent may want to contact the school directly to learn about any intervention services, electives, or extracurriculars that are available.
For a family considering Forest Park Middle, the academic profile is the central consideration. Proficiency is low, and the trend over recent years has been flat to declining. The school serves a diverse, largely Hispanic student body in an urban district that is undergoing economic change. The absence of data on free lunch eligibility and special populations means that the full picture of student needs and supports is not available from this source alone. A parent looking for a school with strong test scores or a wide range of program options may need to weigh this against the school’s other qualities and the resources of the larger Springfield district.
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