The top reported proficiency rate is 54% in Science. The lowest is 23% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on West Branch Ms
West Branch Middle School sits in the small, rural hamlet of Morrisdale in Morris Township, Clearfield County. The school serves grades five through eight and draws from a tightly knit community where the school district itself is one of the major employers. Morrisdale is a low-density residential area along Pennsylvania Route 53, about five miles north of Philipsburg, with a character shaped by retirees, homeowners, and a legacy of coal mining. There is no downtown; homes and civic functions are scattered across rural roads. Population in the area has been flat to slightly declining for years.
The school's current enrollment is small, hovering around a mid-size figure for its grade span. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is both a marker of economic strain in the region and a sign that the school serves families with genuine financial need. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with very few students of other racial or ethnic backgrounds and no enrolled English learners. Data on special education enrollment was not available.
State test proficiency results show a school operating below grade-level expectations. In English language arts, about two in five students scored at proficiency or above on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. In math, proficiency fell to roughly one in four students. Science results from a prior year were stronger, sitting near about even odds, though more recent science data was not available. Across subjects, the school's overall proficiency index places it below the midpoint among the eight districts in Clearfield County.
A parent weighing this school might want to look further into what interventions or support the school offers for students who are not yet meeting proficiency, particularly in math. The testing results are an honest picture of where the student population sits academically, and that warrants close conversation with teachers and administrators about pathways forward.
The broader district is managing a significant shift. In late 2024, the West Branch Area School District approved a major elementary school renovation project spanning multiple years, involving full mechanical system replacement, asbestos remediation, new entryways, and other capital work. That project is actively underway as of mid-2025. To fund it, the district has taken on substantial new debt and implemented consecutive property-tax increases across the two counties it spans, Clearfield and Clinton. Those millage hikes occurred in both 2024-25 and 2025-26 and are expected to continue, directly raising household tax costs for any family living in the district. For homebuyers or renters considering the area, these property-tax movements are concrete factors to include in affordability calculations. Housing values in the Morrisdale zip code are notably lower than the state and national benchmarks, which can make the area attractive for cost, but the rising school taxes narrow that advantage.
The school is a regular public school with no special magnet or charter designation. Program details beyond core academics were not available in the data reviewed. The district office and all three schools sit clustered along Allport Cutoff in Morrisdale, creating a tight institutional footprint in a very rural setting.
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