The top reported proficiency rate is 78% in Science. The lowest is 47% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Central Cambria Ms
Central Cambria Middle School serves grades 6-8 in Ebensburg, a small historic borough high in the Allegheny Mountains and the county seat of Cambria County. The school sits within a district navigating significant structural change: a major enrollment decline has prompted the board to consolidate elementary grades and consider future school closures, and homeowners face a meaningful property tax increase tied to both enrollment loss and a large repayment obligation to a power plant. These shifts frame the middle school as part of a district in retrenchment.
The school's academic performance is mixed. In English language arts, about a majority of students scored at proficient levels on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. In math, the proficiency rate falls notably lower, below half the student body. Science proficiency, tested most recently in the prior year, was substantially higher and well above the other two subjects. When averaging proficiency across tested subjects and grades, Central Cambria MS ranks in the top quartile among the county's districts, a genuine strength in a county where median performance is considerably lower. That distinction matters: it signals the school is ahead of most of its regional peers, even as the school faces the headwinds of a shrinking district and a community grappling with economic and demographic strain.
The enrollment is small, about the size typical for a middle school in a rural area. About two-fifths of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting modest economic hardship in the school's catchment. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with very few students of other races or ethnicities. The school does not report data on students with individualized education plans or English learners, a gap that makes it unclear how well the school is serving those subpopulations; a parent may want to look into this further with the school.
Ebensburg itself is a place of incremental reinvestment rather than growth. The borough completed a major streetscape renovation and downtown facelift several years ago and has invested in critical water-line replacement and other infrastructure. The historic district, added to the National Register several years ago, anchors a preservation-minded approach. Lake Rowena, a stocked park lake with trails and a dog park, and Penn Eben Park, host to a weekly Saturday farmers market and summer concerts, are civic gathering points. The county courthouse, library, and locally owned downtown shops define small-town civic life. Median home prices in the zip code are modest, well below state and national benchmarks, making the area relatively affordable, though property tax increases will ease that advantage for current and prospective homeowners.
The district's enrollment decline is projected to persist over coming years, and the consolidation of elementary grades suggests a likely path toward further school closures. For families considering this school, the questions are whether the middle school's above-county-average proficiency will persist through this transition, how the district's fiscal pressures will affect programming and staffing, and whether the family values the small-town, historically rooted character of Ebensburg as a place to raise children. State assessment data, which the school provides, does not include trend lines, so it is difficult to assess whether performance has improved, declined, or held steady over recent years. A parent could request that information directly from the school or the district.
See more original research from School Decision →