The top reported proficiency rate is 57% in Science. The lowest is 22% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Eastern Lebanon Co Ms
Eastern Lebanon County Middle School serves grades six through eight in Myerstown, a small historic borough in the Lebanon Valley surrounded by farmland and Jackson Township. The school draws from a student population that is predominantly white, with a substantial share qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mixed-income community anchored by manufacturing, agribusiness, and retail employment.
Recent state assessment results show mixed performance. In English language arts, about four in ten students scored proficient or above on the 2024–25 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. Math performance is notably lower, with about one in five students reaching proficiency in that same year. Science results from 2023–24 were stronger, with more than half of tested students proficient. Among Lebanon County school districts, this school's overall proficiency index sits below the midpoint of its peers, suggesting academic performance that lags the broader county context.
The school sits at the core of Myerstown, a walkable borough with dense, older housing dating largely to the early twentieth century and giving way abruptly to farmland. It is a self-contained place: the community library, civic amenities, and neighborhoods cluster within less than a square mile, connected by an extensive sidewalk network. Downtown Myerstown holds a farmers' market, cafes, and taverns; chain retail lines the northern edge along U.S. Route 422. Most workers in the area are employed in manufacturing, health care, or retail, with major employers including Bayer Consumer Care and GAF manufacturing plants. The larger hospital systems serving the region sit a short drive away in Lebanon.
Housing in the Myerstown zip code is priced below the state median and sits near the national benchmark, with median home values and monthly rents both affordable relative to area incomes. The homeownership rate is high, and new construction is occurring at the borough's edges and in the surrounding township, particularly in the Mountain Meadows community, where builders are offering multiple plans at various price points.
The Eastern Lebanon County School District has undertaken a substantial modernization of its high school over the past several years, adding a STEM Center, expanded agricultural science facilities including a greenhouse, and updated technical education shops. The district has raised property taxes in recent years to support this capital project and to offset rising costs in cyber charter school funding and insurance. For 2026–27, the board has signaled it will not raise taxes beyond the state-adjusted index, citing sustained budget pressures. Across the district, the curriculum is shifting toward alignment with the Science of Reading in elementary grades, representing a multi-year pedagogical change in early literacy instruction.
Parent visits to Eastern Lebanon County Middle School should focus on understanding the specific supports in place for math proficiency, given that recent performance in that subject is notably lower than in English language arts, and clarifying what interventions or instructional approaches the school is deploying to address the gap. The school's enrollment is stable and mid-sized for its grade band, and the community it serves is rooted and walkable, though the broader academic positioning warrants direct conversation about the school's plans for improvement.
See more original research from School Decision →