Most Centre County schools beat average standardized test scores in 2025. See the data
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- Most Centre County schools produced above-average proficiency rates via state testing.
- Local schools largely remained on target for Pennsylvania’s growth standards.
- Scores on science exams were waived as Pennsylvania sets new curriculum standards.
Pennsylvania students once again observed modest improvements to their standardized test scores despite falling short of pre-pandemic successes, commonwealth officials report.
Centre County’s schools sustained most recent successes in testing achievement and growth during the 2024-25 testing cycle, according to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the Future Ready PA Index, which collects and tracks school progress measures. Across Pennsylvania, overall student proficiency rates on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) math exams increased from 40.2% during the 2023-24 testing cycle to 41.7% during the 2024-25 testing cycle. The proficiency rate on English PSSA exams fell from 53.9% to 49.9% over that same stretch.
Notably, assessment scores for science exams were waived for the 2024-25 testing cycle as Pennsylvania education officials adopt new curriculum standards. Only testing participation rates were reported this time around.
District officials across Centre County have reviewed overall school performance and shared reports with their respective school boards and faculty members since test scores and growth results became available last summer and fall. Testing for the next round of PSSA exams will begin in late April, while the Keystone exams — end-of-course exams in algebra, literature and biology — are offered in the winter, spring and summer.
The Centre Daily Times has compiled data from the county’s public school standardized tests to see how local districts performed after scores rose last year following years of data gaps and pandemic-era lows. Below is a look at how schools in State College, Bellefonte and beyond tested during the 2024-25 cycle.
Which Centre County schools are meeting standardized testing benchmarks?
As a whole, Centre County schools remained largely consistent in meeting proficiency benchmarks for math and English tests set as part of Pennsylvania’s long-term goal to improve scores by 2033.
All but three of Centre County’s 30 public schools surpassed Pennsylvania’s average rate of proficiency on English and math exams during the 2024-25 testing cycle. Two schools — State College Area High School and Ferguson Township Elementary School — surpassed the English proficiency rate set as the 2033 benchmark (81.1%). Eight schools, meanwhile, posted a better proficiency rate than the 2033 goal for math testing (71.8%).
The Future PA Ready Index uses Act 13 Building Level Scores to evaluate individual school performance by measuring attendance, testing proficiency and growth while adjusting outcomes based on the number of economically disadvantaged students. These scores help evaluate educator effectiveness between buildings.
State High once again claimed the top spot among Centre County schools. No school saw a larger improvement over the 2023-24 testing cycle than Philipsburg-Osceola Middle School (up 12.3 points), while nine others saw their scores increase. Penns Valley Junior-Senior High School dropped 10.9 points from last year’s cycle, marking the largest decrease in the county.
Pennsylvania State Assessment scores
PSSA exams are administered to students in grades 3-8 in English and math with additional science exams administered for the fifth and eighth grades. Keystone exams, another major state assessment, evaluate proficiency in algebra, literature and biology and middle and high school students.
Although many fell short of Pennsylvania’s 2033 goal for proficiency, nearly all Centre County schools tested better than state averages in English and math during the 2024-25 testing cycle. Once again, every State College and Penns Valley school tested above state averages in both subjects, while at least two schools in each of the Bellefonte, Bald Eagle and Philipsburg-Osceola districts fell below the state average proficiency rate in English or math.
Notably, testing data from the 2024-25 cycle does not separate State College’s middle and high school data from the Delta Program, which split into its own middle and high school starting with the 2025-26 academic year. The move will provide unique testing data for Delta students without blending it with the rest of the district starting with next year’s assessment cycle.
Here’s a look at how each district’s schools performed on Pennsylvania’s standardized tests during the 2024-25 cycle, plus how they compare to state averages and long-term goals.
PVAAS growth scores
The Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment System, or PVAAS, examines year-to-year proficiency scores to measure growth in key subject areas. These scores compare actual growth of student groups against a predicted standard.
Twenty-six Centre County schools surpassed Pennsylvania’s target growth score (70) in at least one of English or math during the latest testing cycle, recent data shows. The latest batch of data reports 22 schools surpassed the growth benchmark in English, down from 24 such schools in the 2023-24 testing cycle. Once again, 20 schools met or exceeded the growth target in math testing.
Miles Township Elementary, which closed shortly before the start of the 2025-26 school year, reported an insufficient sample for its English and math PVAAS scores during the 2024-25 testing cycle.
Here’s a look at how testing scores progressed following the 2024-25 testing cycle in English and math.
While presenting state testing data to Penns Valley’s school board in February, John Zesiger, the assistant superintendent, said the district will continue working to meet growth targets for each building. He credited the district’s many employees for their efforts helping students improve proficiency and growth scores during the 2024-25 testing cycle.
“It doesn’t mean we don’t have areas to fix and areas [in which] we need to improve, but it really is something to be celebrated, all this work and effort,” Zesiger said. “It’s really a feather in the cap for all of our staff, our support staff, our teachers and our administrators, all the hard work they do day in and day out that puts numbers like that on the board for this district.”
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