Cincinnatus Middle School, Cincinnatus NY

Original Research by School Decision on Cincinnatus Middle School

Cincinnatus Middle School serves grades five through eight in a small, rural community at the eastern edge of Cortland County. The school is one of three buildings in the Cincinnatus Central School District, all located on the same campus slightly outside the hamlet's downtown center. The enrollment is small, with just over one hundred students spread across the grade band.

Academically, the school shows a mixed but generally solid picture. Mathematics proficiency varies notably by grade. Fifth graders perform at about the midpoint for state proficiency, while sixth graders significantly underperform in math, and seventh graders reach above-midpoint proficiency. Eighth graders sit slightly above midpoint. English Language Arts proficiency is somewhat more consistent across grades, clustering in the middle range, with fifth and eighth graders performing at similar levels and sixth and seventh graders slightly lower. Science stands out as a relative strength: both fifth and eighth graders reach above-midpoint proficiency in science. The school's overall proficiency index, which averages results across tested subjects and grades, places it in the top quartile among districts in Cortland County, a meaningful distinction in the county's six-district comparison set. This performance suggests the school is meeting or exceeding the academic bar in the broader regional context.

The student body is quite homogeneous. Nearly all students identify as white, with only one Hispanic student and one student identifying as two or more races reported. Just over half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of family economic need that aligns with the rural setting. Specific data on students with disabilities or English learners was not available, so a parent may want to look into that further with the school.

The town of Cincinnatus itself is a quiet, rural place in the Otselic River valley with modest population, predominantly older housing, and limited new development. Most residents own their homes. The broader region relies on car travel; nearby employment centers like Cortland and Norwich draw commuters. The school district ranks among the town's largest employers. Housing values and rents reflect the rural setting and modest income levels of the area.

The district recently passed a capital project referendum in December 2024 that will fund over twenty facility improvements across the three schools, with work expected between 2026 and 2027. Notably, the project requires no new local tax burden because it is funded through state building aid and existing district reserves, a point of relevance for families concerned about the cost of living in the district.

A parent considering this school should expect a small, quiet middle school serving a rural community with consistent core academic performance that ranks well within its county peer group, particularly in science. The school's size and rural setting offer a different experience than larger, more diverse suburban or urban schools. Families here tend to own their homes, and economic pressures are present for a meaningful share of the student body.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 54%

▲ 2 pts above state median

Grade 630%

School 30% · District 28% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 15 pts below state median

Grade 767%

School 67% · District 63% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median

Grade 857%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 19 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 59%

▲ 4 pts above state median

Grade 647%

School 47% · District 45% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median

Grade 759%

School 59% · District 57% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median

Grade 860%

School 60% · District 60%

▲ 12 pts above state median

Science

Grade 571%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 30 pts above state median

Grade 871%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 38 pts above state median

Social studies

Grade 597%

School 97% · district not reported

▲ 6 pts above state median

Grade 880%

School 80% · district not reported

▲ 2 pts above state median

This schoolCINCINNATUS CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 5Lower-income53%Higher-income67%14 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income38%Higher-income55%17 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income50%Higher-income75%25 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income64%Higher-income55%10 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income50%Higher-income58%8 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income27%6 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income58%Higher-income83%25 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income42%Higher-income73%31 pp gap