Wilbur Cross High School

Summary:

Wilbur Cross High School is a public high school in New Haven, Connecticut, serving 1,633 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the New Haven School District, which is ranked 149 out of 158 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Wilbur Cross High School consistently underperforms compared to state and district averages in standardized test scores, with only 29% of 11th-grade students proficient or better in SAT/English Language Arts, 8.3% in SAT/Math, and 17.1% in NGSS/Science. The school struggles to support the academic achievement of its diverse student population, ranking in the bottom quartile of Connecticut high schools for African American, Hispanic, and low socioeconomic status students. As a result, Wilbur Cross High School has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger, placing it among the lowest-performing high schools in the state. Interestingly, nearby schools in the New Haven School District, such as Sound School, also struggle with academic performance, but to varying degrees.

Wilbur Cross High School has a high percentage of students (75.93%) who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage among the student population. The school's relatively high per-student spending of $15,850 and low student-teacher ratio of 12.6 do not seem to translate into improved academic outcomes, suggesting that factors other than staffing levels, such as curriculum, instruction, and school culture, may be contributing to the school's challenges. Some nearby schools, such as Metropolitan Business Academy and Cooperative High School - Inter-District Magnet, are public magnet schools that tend to have slightly better academic outcomes than the traditional public high schools in the district, indicating that school choice and specialized programs may be beneficial for students.


Detail:

Public 9-12

 181 Mitchell Dr.
       New Haven, CT  06511


(475) 220-7400

District: New Haven School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
126th of 145 Connecticut High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $18,689 Help


Student/teacher ratio:  14.7 Help
Number of students:  1,721

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
65.4%
African American:
20.6%
White:
9.5%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  75.9% Help


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Performance Trends
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Compare Details Wilbur Cross High School ranks worse than 86.9% of high schools in Connecticut. It also ranks 5th among 7 ranked high schools in the New Haven School District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 11.47. (See more...)
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The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at Wilbur Cross High School who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.
Help
Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.
Student Body
Help
Compare Details Wilbur Cross High School has the largest high school student body size in the New Haven School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (65.4%), African American (20.6%), White (9.5%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 75.9% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Wilbur Cross High School is 14.7, which is the highest among 9 high schools in the New Haven School District! (See more...)
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Compare Wilbur Cross High School employs 116.4 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Wilbur Cross High School is $18,689, which is the lowest among 9 high schools in the New Haven School District!
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Wilbur Cross High School:

SchoolDigger ranks Wilbur Cross High School 126th of 145 Connecticut public high schools. (See Wilbur Cross High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Female students:
Male students:
Hispanic students:
White students:


New Haven School District:

SchoolDigger ranks New Haven School District 149th of 158 Connecticut school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Your rating for Wilbur Cross High School?

Rank History for Wilbur Cross High School

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Rank History for all students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2007 3.94 165th 176 6.3%
2008 2.62 168th 176 4.5%
2009 2.05 170th 176 3.4%
2010 6.25 172nd 186 7.5%
2011 11.27 170th 189 10.1%
2012 3.05 178th 188 5.3%
2013 3.52 179th 193 7.3%
2015 11.67 179th 196 8.7%
2016 11.59 116th 132 12.1%
2017 13.27 124th 140 11.4%
2018 15.85 110th 121 9.1%
2019 8.67 113th 121 6.6%
2021 17.20 164th 200 18.0%
2022 10.67 126th 139 9.4%
2023 13.78 117th 142 17.6%
2024 11.47 126th 145 13.1%
See the entire list of Connecticut High School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 0.00 1st 10 90.0%
2022 0.00 11th 17 35.3%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 17.00 148th 175 15.4%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 19.34 128th 155 17.4%
2022 7.46 63rd 63 0.0%
2023 12.16 66th 70 5.7%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 16.43 73rd 79 7.6%
2021 15.77 160th 189 15.3%
2022 8.49 95th 106 10.4%
2023 6.11 96th 103 6.8%
2024 10.97 91st 102 10.8%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 7.92 75th 78 3.8%
2021 17.18 151st 182 17.0%
2022 7.95 96th 102 5.9%
2023 14.16 85th 100 15.0%
2024 7.50 94th 100 6.0%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 17.85 53rd 58 8.6%
2022 16.29 24th 25 4.0%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 29.15 15th 18 16.7%
2021 22.61 85th 104 18.3%
2022 18.47 50th 59 15.3%
2023 20.18 55th 63 12.7%
2024 21.58 53rd 63 15.9%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Wilbur Cross High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CT State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 10.65 109th 113 3.5%
2021 60.36 62nd 155 60.0%
2024 26.02 91st 116 21.6%
See the entire list of Best Connecticut High Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Connecticut Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Wilbur Cross High School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 



Data source: Connecticut State Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 4)
0%

100%

0%

0%

0%

  

Reviews:
by a student
Saturday, October 24, 2009

Open Quote Wonderful school especially because I entered in my senior year from a private school. This school has great diversity and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a great community and school spirit! Close Quote



Enrollment information for Wilbur Cross High School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 375 662 17 425 2 n/a n/a 0 1481
1989 356 555 35 421 0 n/a n/a 0 1367
1990 367 571 33 482 n/a n/a n/a 0 1453
1991 353 581 34 502 0 n/a n/a 0 1470
1992 346 625 30 572 1 n/a n/a 0 1574
1993 307 638 34 554 2 n/a n/a 0 1535
1994 236 484 30 445 2 n/a n/a 0 1197
1995 192 543 44 583 0 n/a n/a 0 1362
1996 192 543 44 583 0 n/a n/a 0 1362
1997 171 511 53 542 0 n/a n/a 0 1277
1998 182 577 54 572 0 n/a n/a 0 1385
1999 184 571 62 586 0 n/a n/a 0 1403
2000 197 534 64 577 0 n/a n/a 0 1372
2001 237 599 40 561 0 n/a n/a 0 1437
2002 253 650 30 658 1 n/a n/a -3 1589
2003 253 650 30 658 1 n/a n/a -3 1589
2004 227 766 30 701 0 n/a n/a 0 1724
2005 193 753 33 728 0 n/a n/a 0 1707
2006 150 610 18 606 1 n/a n/a 0 1385
2007 170 815 37 772 3 n/a n/a 0 1797
2008 161 793 31 808 2 n/a n/a 0 1795
2009 171 713 30 746 2 n/a n/a 0 1662
2010 181 679 31 725 4 n/a n/a 0 1620
2011 143 512 28 597 4 0 0 0 1284
2012 151 453 29 601 2 0 2 0 1238
2013 168 473 27 674 0 0 6 0 1348
2014 160 509 25 717 0 2 8 0 1421
2015 157 480 29 689 1 2 4 0 1362
2016 179 465 31 765 2 1 3 0 1446
2017 172 426 28 856 2 1 3 0 1488
2018 174 417 30 832 2 1 2 0 1458
2019 179 429 34 944 2 0 6 0 1594
2020 173 410 28 936 4 0 2 0 1553
2021 181 392 38 928 5 0 3 0 1547
2022 171 366 35 980 3 0 8 0 1563
2023 169 352 39 1058 3 0 12 0 1633
2024 163 354 47 1125 5 0 27 0 1721

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Wilbur Cross High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1481 102.0 14.5 n/a
1989 1367 102.0 13.4 n/a
1990 1453 103.0 14.1 n/a
1991 1470 102.0 14.4 n/a
1992 1574 106.2 14.8 24.7
1993 1535 105.2 14.6 1.8
1994 1197 97.9 12.2 59.4
1995 1362 92.0 14.8 62.3
1996 1362 92.0 14.8 62.3
1997 1277 96.3 13.3 50.1
1998 1385 96.3 14.4 49.5
1999 1403 99.7 14.1 39.3
2000 1372 101.1 13.6 40.7
2001 1437 102.7 14.0 n/a
2002 1589 111.1 14.3 54.5
2003 1589 111.1 14.3 54.5
2004 1724 110.0 15.7 58.7
2005 1707 116.6 14.6 n/a
2006 1385 116.6 11.9 96.3
2007 1797 117.3 15.3 81.7
2008 1795 139.7 12.8 72.4
2009 1662 154.0 11.8 70.9
2010 1620 139.0 11.6 72.2
2011 1284 125.0 10.2 81.9
2012 1238 117.6 10.5 80.5
2013 1348 120.8 11.1 80.3
2014 1421 130.2 10.9 61.6
2015 1362 115.0 11.8 55.7
2016 1446 125.0 11.5 52.4
2017 1488 126.0 11.8 64
2018 1458 130.0 11.2 70.6
2019 1594 111.0 14.3 76.1
2020 1553 115.0 13.5 68.7
2021 1547 113.4 13.6 71.7
2022 1563 113.4 13.7 71.3
2023 1633 129.4 12.6 75.9
2024 1721 116.4 14.7 75.9

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Wilbur Cross High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1481 102.0 14.5 n/a
1989 1367 102.0 13.4 n/a
1990 1453 103.0 14.1 n/a
1991 1470 102.0 14.4 n/a
1992 1574 106.2 14.8 24.7
1993 1535 105.2 14.6 1.8
1994 1197 97.9 12.2 59.4
1995 1362 92.0 14.8 62.3
1996 1362 92.0 14.8 62.3
1997 1277 96.3 13.3 50.1
1998 1385 96.3 14.4 49.5
1999 1403 99.7 14.1 39.3
2000 1372 101.1 13.6 40.7
2001 1437 102.7 14.0 n/a
2002 1589 111.1 14.3 54.5
2003 1589 111.1 14.3 54.5
2004 1724 110.0 15.7 58.7
2005 1707 116.6 14.6 n/a
2006 1385 116.6 11.9 96.3
2007 1797 117.3 15.3 81.7
2008 1795 139.7 12.8 72.4
2009 1662 154.0 11.8 70.9
2010 1620 139.0 11.6 72.2
2011 1284 125.0 10.2 81.9
2012 1238 117.6 10.5 80.5
2013 1348 120.8 11.1 80.3
2014 1421 130.2 10.9 61.6
2015 1362 115.0 11.8 55.7
2016 1446 125.0 11.5 52.4
2017 1488 126.0 11.8 64
2018 1458 130.0 11.2 70.6
2019 1594 111.0 14.3 76.1
2020 1553 115.0 13.5 68.7
2021 1547 113.4 13.6 71.7
2022 1563 113.4 13.7 71.3
2023 1633 129.4 12.6 75.9
2024 1721 116.4 14.7 75.9

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Wilbur Cross High School

Help

YearTotal Expenditures Per Pupil
2018 $16,951
2019 $15,850
2020 $15,860
2021 $16,737
2022 $18,090
2023 $18,689

Data source: Connecticut Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Wilbur Cross High School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 113th of 121 High schoolsRanks 117th of 142 High schools
 11%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
11th Grade English Language Arts (Wilbur Cross High School)29.126.5
 2.6%
   11th Grade English Language Arts (New Haven School District)34.326.8
 7.5%
   11th Grade English Language Arts (Connecticut)61.652.4
 9.2%
11th Grade Math (Wilbur Cross High School)8.310.1
 1.8%
   11th Grade Math (New Haven School District)12.111.4
 0.7%
   11th Grade Math (Connecticut)40.634.1
 6.5%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students15941633
 2.4%
African American429352
 17.9%
American Indian23
 50%
Asian3439
 14.7%
Hispanic9441058
 12.1%
Pacific Islander00
White179169
 5.6%
Two or More Races612
 100%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients76.1%75.9%
 0.2%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Wilbur Cross High School

Wilbur Cross High School ranks in the bottom 13.1% of Connecticut high schools.

Students at Wilbur Cross High School are 65% Hispanic, 21% African American, 9% White, 3% Asian, 2% Two or more races.

In the 2023-24 school year, 1,721 students attended Wilbur Cross High School.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Connecticut Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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