The top reported proficiency rate is 49% in English language arts. The lowest is 29% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Central Preston Middle School
Central Preston Middle School sits on Wildcat Way in Kingwood, the county seat of Preston County, serving grades five through eight as a regular public school in the Preston County Schools district. The enrollment is modest, with a fairly even distribution across the four grades and a slight bulge in the upper grades. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with only a handful of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. Economic data through free or reduced-price lunch counts was not reported, and figures for students with individualized education programs and English learners were also missing, so the picture of student need at the school is incomplete from what is available.
On state testing, the most recent West Virginia General Summative Assessment results show a school that is stronger in English language arts than in math or science. In ELA, proficiency rates climb steadily from fifth grade through eighth, with the seventh grade reaching a clear majority of students scoring proficient or above and eighth grade close behind. Math tells a different story. Fifth grade starts at a middling level, drops sharply in sixth grade, then partially recovers in seventh and eighth. Science results are the weakest area, with fifth grade at a modest level and eighth grade notably lower. A parent weighing this school might want to look into how the school supports math progression through the middle grades and what drives the science dip by eighth grade. Participation was near-universal across all tested grades.
Trend data was limited to a single year, so there is no multi-year picture available to judge whether these results are improving, declining, or holding steady. Average scale scores were not reported, which further constrains any read beyond the proficiency rates themselves.
Kingwood provides the backdrop. The town has a small mountain-community character, with a National Register Historic District, a downtown grid, and the WV Northern Rail-Trail running from Kingwood to Tunnelton for walking and biking. Civic life centers on the county courthouse, the public library, and the annual Buckwheat Festival. Preston Memorial Hospital, county government, and the nearby National Guard training site at Camp Dawson are the major employers. The former largest private employer, a bronze foundry, has closed. Publicly reported estimates indicate the town is experiencing slight population decline, and no major new housing developments are noted, though the hospital opened a new facility in recent years. Housing in the school's zip code sits well below the national benchmark and slightly below the West Virginia state benchmark, making this one of the more affordable areas in an already affordable state. Rental data was not available.
Within the district, the publicly reported establishment of the Rowlesburg Opportunity Center in 2025 is the most notable recent change, reflecting Preston County Schools' evolving school configuration. How this affects attendance zones or options for Kingwood families is not detailed in the available data.
Central Preston Middle offers a traditional public school pathway in a close-knit rural county seat, with reading results that trend upward through the middle grades and math and science results that raise fair questions about academic support in those subjects. The community is quiet and affordable, anchored by civic institutions and outdoor recreation, but not growing. For a family drawn to small-town Appalachian life with integrated schools and a walkable historic core, this is a setting worth understanding on its own terms.
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