The top reported proficiency rate is 29% in Math. The lowest is 24% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Cambridge Elem.
Cambridge Elementary serves kindergarten through fourth grade in Belton, part of the Belton 124 school district. It is one of several elementary schools in the district, which also operates two middle schools and one high school. The school enrolls a student population that is predominantly white, with Hispanic and Black students together making up a notable minority share, and a small number of students of Asian, multiracial, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander backgrounds. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker that the school serves many households with lower incomes.
The most direct window into academic performance at Cambridge comes from Missouri’s state assessments, the MAP tests, given in third and fourth grade. In both math and English language arts, the share of students scoring at the proficient or advanced level fell below the midpoint when compared with other districts across Cass County. In third grade math, roughly a quarter of students met the proficiency bar, and the same grade saw a similar rate in English. Fourth graders posted a slightly lower share proficient in English, near a fifth of students, while math remained around the same level as third grade. These results suggest that, at least in these tested grades, a majority of students are not yet reaching the state’s proficiency targets. A parent may want to ask the school about the supports in place for students who are not meeting those benchmarks, and about how the curriculum is structured to help more children reach grade-level expectations.
Because Cambridge only goes through fourth grade, there is no graduation rate to report. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and state testing data for earlier primary grades is not available because those grades are not tested under Missouri’s system. Information on discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, and staffing ratios was not available in the data reviewed, leaving those aspects of school climate unexamined here.
The community context matters. Belton is a suburban city in Cass County within the Kansas City metropolitan area. Its housing stock is mostly owner-occupied, with median home values and rents that are moderate relative to the region. The city’s economy is anchored by a major distribution center, a school district, a hospital, and retail chains. The built environment is car-dependent, with strip commercial development along the highway corridor and residential subdivisions. Schools are spread across separate campuses rather than clustered in a single area. A portion of eastern Belton falls in a different school district, so families should verify which attendance zone a home is in.
In April 2024, voters in the Belton district approved a substantial bond issue that did not raise the tax rate. Publicly reported details indicate the money is designated for facility improvements, safety upgrades, HVAC replacements, and classroom additions. For families at Cambridge, that means the physical plant and learning environment could see changes over time, though which specific projects affect this campus were not detailed in the information available. The bond’s passage suggests community support for the district’s infrastructure, and the no-tax-increase structure means it was designed to be budget-neutral for property owners.
Overall, Cambridge Elementary is a regular public school serving a younger student body in a suburban district that has recently committed to facility investment. The state test results show a majority of students below the proficient line, a pattern that is below the county average in the grade levels tested. Families choosing this school will want to understand how the school addresses that gap and what academic supports are embedded in the primary grades. The school’s size and composition are typical of a suburban elementary school in a middle-income community, and the district’s recent bond vote points to a community that is investing in its school buildings.
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