The top reported proficiency rate is 31% in English language arts. The lowest is 18% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Eisenhower Ms
Eisenhower MS is a middle school serving grades five through eight in Norristown, a county-seat municipality along the Schuylkill River in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The school enrolls a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, with substantial Black enrollment and smaller Asian and multiracial populations. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic circumstances of the neighborhoods the school serves. The building sits at a central Markley Street address in a moderately walkable downtown setting undergoing significant redevelopment.
Academic performance at Eisenhower is below the midpoint among Montgomery County districts across tested subjects. In English language arts, proficiency stands at less than one-third of students. Mathematics proficiency is notably lower, with fewer than one-fifth of students meeting state standards. Science data from the prior school year showed proficiency around one-quarter of students. These results place the school in the bottom quartile of county districts on overall proficiency. A parent considering Eisenhower should understand that students here face significant academic headwinds and that the school's instructional challenge is substantial.
The context matters. Norristown Area School District has spent the last several years stabilizing its finances after a long period of underfunding relative to other Pennsylvania districts, with the tax base complicated by substantial tax-exempt property holdings. The district has added staff positions steadily, including teachers, paraprofessionals, psychologists, and security personnel, and has revised curriculum documents across all grades to align with state standards and invested in new instructional materials. For 2025-26, the district funded additional roles supporting gifted programs, English language development, and special education. These are foundational moves, though their effects take time to show in testing outcomes.
Norristown itself is at an inflection point. After decades with little new private investment, the municipality has major development underway. A county Justice Center project anchors downtown renewal, with apartment buildings, trail infrastructure, and housing redevelopment on former state hospital land planned or under construction. Housing costs in the area remain below state and national benchmarks, and rental costs are stable, making the neighborhood affordable for families. The transit center, anchored by SEPTA regional rail and bus service, sits a few blocks from the school.
The school's peer group—other students in the building—is almost entirely from low-income households. Ninety percent or more of students qualify for free lunch. This is not a weakness in itself; it is the reality of who attends. For families seeking a school where most peers come from similar economic circumstances, or where English is often a home language other than English, Eisenhower fits that profile. For families prioritizing exposure to students from higher-income or more economically mixed backgrounds, the composition would pull in a different direction.
State testing data was collected for the school year ending in 2025, and science data from the prior year, so the picture is current. No data on chronic absenteeism, graduation rate (the school does not serve grades nine through twelve), special education enrollment, or English learner enrollment were available in the sources, so a parent may want to contact the school directly to understand those dimensions. The school's website was not available in the data provided.
Eisenhower is a school where academic demand is high and outcomes lag significantly behind county averages. It is embedded in a district that is working to increase staffing and refresh instruction, and in a town that is beginning to attract new residents and investment. The fit depends on whether a family is drawn to affordability, walkability to downtown, transit access, and enrollment in a school serving predominantly low-income, Hispanic, and Black students where there is visible institutional effort to improve, or whether academic performance relative to other options in the county matters more to the decision.
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