Central Middle School

Central Middle School, a moderately sized middle school in Waterloo, Iowa, overseen by Waterloo Comm School District, enrolls 469 students, covering grades 6 through 8.

Within Waterloo Comm School District, which oversees 18 schools and 10,484 students, Central Middle School is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Central Middle School records that the most-represented group is Black (34%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. Beyond that, the school reports 26% White, 15% Hispanic, 12% multiracial, 8% Pacific Islander. By comparison, Black Hawk County as a whole is about 9% Black, so the school skews visibly more Black than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, The school lists 35 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 13.3:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 15.2:1, putting Central Middle School tighter than the state norm the norm. Roughly 85% of students at Central Middle School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. By comparison, Black Hawk County runs at roughly 52%, so the school's eligibility rate is somewhat above the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, Central Middle School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 49.4%; this one delivers 47.5%.

In the broader community, census data for Black Hawk County shows the typical household earns roughly $66,417 per year, about 30% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. Central Middle School is one of 35 public schools in Black Hawk County (combined enrollment of about 18,224 students).

Nearest neighbor: Fred Becker Elementary School, around 0.6 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, Central Middle School comes 9th of 9 in the immediate cluster, below the nearby-schools average of 69.8%.

The school occupies an inner-city site.

Over the past 7-year window. Central Middle School's enrollment has showed little movement since 2018, when it stood at 469 (now 469). White enrollment moved from 34% to 26% across the same window. Class-load math has grew: from 11.6:1 in 2018 to 13.3:1 in 2025.

Inside the community feed, members of the Central Middle School community share and discuss open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.