The top reported proficiency rate is 70% in English language arts. The lowest is 53% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Upton Middle School
Upton Middle School serves grades six through eight as part of St. Joseph Public Schools, a regular public school sitting in the lakefront community of Saint Joseph in Berrien County. The school draws from a city that blends residential neighborhoods, a tourism-oriented Lake Michigan waterfront, and a civic core as the Berrien County seat. Whirlpool Corporation's nearby global headquarters anchors the workday economy, alongside healthcare, county government, and seasonal hospitality. The downtown along State Street is compact and walkable, with shops, the Krasl Art Center, and lakefront parks clustered within a few blocks, while school campuses sit on separate sites in surrounding residential neighborhoods where walkability gives way to lower-density single-family streets.
The housing market in the school's zip code sits above the Michigan state benchmark but below the national one, with home values and rents both showing modest year-over-year appreciation. Estimated monthly mortgage costs run slightly above local rents, which means families weighing ownership versus renting face a fairly tight spread. The broader city has experienced steady population decline over decades and is nearly built-out, so large-scale new housing is unlikely within city limits. Development attention has centered on downtown and lakefront revitalization rather than expansion, which keeps the community's character stable but limits new housing supply.
Academically, Upton shows a clear pattern across its tested grades. English language arts results climb steadily from sixth through eighth grade, with eighth-grade ELA reaching a notably high proficiency level. Math results hold more consistent across the three grades, with a modest uptick by eighth grade when students take the PSAT rather than the M-STEP. Science and social studies, both tested only in eighth grade, land in a solid mid-range. Taken together, the school's overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the top quartile relative to districts in Berrien County, which positions Upton as one of the stronger-performing schools in its immediate region. The strongest signal is in eighth-grade ELA, where the large majority of tested students reached proficiency. Math, while respectable, is the area where fewer students clear the bar, and a parent may want to look into how the school supports students who arrive below grade level in that subject.
Trend data comparing year-over-year performance was not available, so it is not possible to say whether these results reflect growth, stability, or recent change. Participation rates for the state assessments were also missing from the available data. Because Upton is a middle school serving only grades six through eight, it has no graduation rate, and the graduation comparison for Berrien County districts does not apply here. Chronic absenteeism data was likewise not reported.
The student body is predominantly white, with Black, Hispanic, multiracial, and Asian students making up the remaining share. A modest portion of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Information on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not reported, which leaves a gap in understanding the full range of student needs the school serves. No Title I status was indicated.
Program offerings, course access details, staffing ratios, discipline data, and attendance figures were not available in the provided data, so those dimensions of school life cannot be characterized here. The district brief for St. Joseph Public Schools turned up no specific parent-relevant changes with lasting impact in recent reporting.
What the available evidence describes is a mid-sized middle school in a stable lakefront community, performing well above the Berrien County median on academic proficiency, with particular strength in upper-grade English language arts. Families considering Upton will find a school in a walkable, civically active town with a housing market that is moderately priced by national standards, limited new construction, and an economy anchored by a major corporate employer and seasonal tourism. The academic picture is solid, with math the area most worth a closer conversation with the school.
See more original research from School Decision →