The top reported proficiency rate is 16% in Math. The lowest is 0% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Johnson Co Central Middle Sch
Johnson County Central Middle School is a regular public school serving grades six through eight in the village of Cook, Nebraska. It belongs to the Johnson County Central Public Schools district, a consolidated district that draws students from several communities across the county. The school building is located on a quiet village street, and the setting is deeply rural. Cook itself is a very small village with a population that has held essentially flat over recent decades, a grid of single-family homes, and limited commercial activity. Most households own multiple cars, and commuting by car is the norm. There is no distinct downtown or pedestrian retail district to speak of. The school is the single middle school for the district, meaning it serves as the academic hub for this age group across a wide geographic area.
The student body is small in size for a middle school. The majority of students are white, with a substantial share of Hispanic students and smaller numbers of Asian, Black, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and two-or-more-races students. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a standard measure of economic need. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available; a parent may want to ask the school directly for that information.
The academic picture from Nebraska’s state assessments shows an uneven pattern. In grade seven, roughly half of students met proficiency standards in both math and English language arts. In grades six and eight, the reported proficiency rate for those subjects was zero percent, and eighth-grade science also reported zero percent. That sharp contrast within the same school is unusual. It is possible that very small cohort sizes in those grades produced these results, but the available data does not explain the cause. A multi-year trend line for the school as a whole suggests that overall proficiency in math and ELA has declined compared to earlier years. A parent looking at this school will want to follow up with the administration to understand what is happening in the sixth and eighth grades and what steps are being taken.
Because this is a middle school, there is no graduation rate, college readiness data, or advanced coursework metrics. Information about course offerings, electives, and student support programs was not provided. The comparison system could not place the school’s academic performance relative to other districts in Johnson County because the cohort was too small for that calculation. No data on chronic absenteeism or discipline was available either.
The community context is that of a very small, stable rural village. The largest employment sectors in Cook are public administration, retail trade, and educational services. The median home value has risen moderately in recent years, but no major development or new housing projects are documented. The village is not set up for any significant walkability or street life. For families, the school offers a small, contained environment in a quiet rural setting, but the academic data raises questions that merit a conversation with the school to get a fuller picture.
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