Best Public Schools in Lawrence, MA

Summary:

The city of Lawrence, Massachusetts is home to 29 schools, including 16 elementary schools, 8 middle schools, 4 high schools, and 1 alternative school. The schools in this district vary significantly in their academic performance, with a few standout charter schools like Community Day Charter Public School and Lawrence Family Development Charter School showing stronger results compared to the district-run public schools.

The largest high school in the district, Lawrence High School, has very low academic performance, with only 22.33% proficiency in 10th grade English Language Arts and 14.67% in 10th grade Mathematics. The school has a 0-star rating and ranks 329th out of 347 high schools statewide. In contrast, Community Day Charter Public School stands out as the highest performing school in the district, with 40.63% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts and 50.21% proficient or better in Mathematics across all grades.

The data also reveals significant challenges at the alternative and special education schools in the district, such as the School for Exceptional Studies, which has 0% proficiency in English Language Arts and Mathematics across all grades, as well as very low graduation rates and high dropout rates. Addressing the needs of these vulnerable student populations will be crucial for improving overall academic outcomes in the Lawrence school district.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts (2024)								MCAS Next Generation Mathematics (2024)								MCAS Next Generation Science (2024)				MCAS Next Generation Biology (2024)	MCAS Next Generation Physics (2024)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2021)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 4th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 6th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 7th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 10th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 3rd Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 4th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 6th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 7th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 10th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Science 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science 10th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Biology All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Physics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Community Day Charter Public School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	73 Prospect Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Community Day Charter Public School (District)	Yes	No	No	Yes	(978) 681-9910	1,195	116	10.3		22 (1.8%)	16 (1.3%)	1,144 (95.7%)	5 (0.4%)	3 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.4%)	53.9	429^th of 916 public elementary schools	53.2%		52.1	459^th of 928 public elementary schools	50.5%	30	33.0	34.4	32.8	47.1	43.0	54.0		40.6	44.3	54.9	46.4	63.0	42.1	49.6		50.2	34.4	49.6		41.6			$18,892	$2,550	$16,342
Lawrence Family Development Charter School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	34 West Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence Family Development Charter (District)	Yes	No	No	Yes	(978) 689-9863	854	42	20.2		6 (0.7%)	2 (0.2%)	844 (98.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	18.8	754^th of 916 public elementary schools	17.7%		19	755^th of 928 public elementary schools	18.6%	1	35.7	13.3	26.3	16.4	50.7	45.7		30.7	31.0	10.8	18.8	13.7	27.5	24.6		21.0	25.0	38.6		31.3			$14,906	$1,857	$13,049
Phoenix Academy Public Charter High School Lawrence	Public, Charter	9-12	15 Union Street	Lawrence	01840	Essex County	Phoenix Academy Public Charter High School Lawrence (Distric	Yes	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8410	125	12	10.4		18 (14.4%)	4 (3.2%)	101 (80.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																					7.1		$18,677	$2,539	$16,138
Lawlor Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	41 Lexington Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5956	164	14	11.7		4 (2.4%)	2 (1.2%)	157 (95.7%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																							$17,989	$1,987	$16,002
John Breen School	Public	PK-K	114 Osgood Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5932	258	25	10.5		13 (5.0%)	6 (2.3%)	231 (89.5%)	7 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)								(n/a)																							$17,034	$1,611	$15,423
Alexander B Bruce	Public	3-8	135 Butler Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5935	409	49	8.3		9 (2.2%)	9 (2.2%)	381 (93.2%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	14.6	432^nd of 493 public middle schools	12.4%		17.4	416^th of 501 public middle schools	17.0%	16	16.7	9.6	12.0	15.4	11.0	14.5		13.2	27.8	25.0	12.0	7.7	12.3	22.9		18.1	18.0	10.8		13.5			$17,417	$1,878	$15,539
Emily G Wetherbee	Public	K-8	75 Newton Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 557-2900	495	64	7.7		12 (2.4%)	4 (0.8%)	469 (94.7%)	7 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	16.5	782^nd of 916 public elementary schools	14.6%		17	782^nd of 928 public elementary schools	15.7%		8.7	26.4	8.3	6.5	21.0	18.0		15.5	37.0	30.2	12.5	21.7	22.6	14.8		22.8	14.6	14.8		14.7			$17,767	$2,153	$15,613
Francis M Leahy	Public	PK, KG-5	233 Haverhill Street	Lawrence	01840	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5959	380	39	9.7		5 (1.3%)	4 (1.1%)	370 (97.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3.9	911^th of 916 public elementary schools	0.5%		4.7	917^th of 928 public elementary schools	1.2%	6	5.3	5.5	8.1					6.2	5.3	4.1	1.6					3.8	7.9			7.9			$16,791	$1,528	$15,263
James F Hennessey	Public	PK, KG-2	122 Hancock Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5950	317	35	9.1		15 (4.7%)	8 (2.5%)	292 (92.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)								(n/a)																							$18,273	$1,599	$16,675
Gerard A. Guilmette	Public	1-4	80 Bodwell Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 686-8150	481	53	9.0		12 (2.5%)	7 (1.5%)	452 (94.0%)	7 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	4.3	910^th of 916 public elementary schools	0.7%		4.8	916^th of 928 public elementary schools	1.3%	6	5.0	9.5						7.0	5.0	11.6						7.9							$16,977	$1,635	$15,342
Edward F. Parthum	Public	K-4	255 E Haverhill Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 691-7200	677	48	14.1		24 (3.5%)	11 (1.6%)	634 (93.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.7%)	17.6	767^th of 916 public elementary schools	16.3%		17.8	771^st of 928 public elementary schools	16.9%	4	20.3	15.5						17.8	34.5	23.3						28.6							$15,711	$1,530	$14,181
South Lawrence East Elementary School	Public	1-5	165 Crawford Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5970	653	52	12.6		22 (3.4%)	9 (1.4%)	595 (91.1%)	20 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.9%)	23.6	702^nd of 916 public elementary schools	23.4%		12	845^th of 928 public elementary schools	8.9%	143	36.6	10.2	15.5					21.1	51.2	18.9	16.4					29.4	22.4			22.4			$15,291	$1,542	$13,749
Arlington Middle School	Public	5-8	150 Arlington Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5930	575	47	12.2		7 (1.2%)	3 (0.5%)	563 (97.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	13.8	441^st of 493 public middle schools	10.5%		13.6	438^th of 501 public middle schools	12.6%	3			8.7	9.7	7.8	14.6		10.4			5.8	7.5	13.2	24.5		13.4	14.7	12.6		13.4			$15,778	$1,530	$14,248
Robert Frost	Public	K-4	33 Hamlet Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5941	572	47	12.1		36 (6.3%)	13 (2.3%)	496 (86.7%)	18 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.2%)	28.5	650^th of 916 public elementary schools	29.0%		23.1	714^th of 928 public elementary schools	23.1%	64	26.7	17.5						21.9	43.8	35.1						39.3							$16,321	$1,709	$14,612
John K Tarbox	Public	1-5	59 Alder Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5983	275	24	11.4		6 (2.2%)	1 (0.4%)	267 (97.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	21.8	718^th of 916 public elementary schools	21.6%		19.2	752^nd of 928 public elementary schools	19.0%	34	24.1	23.9	10.5					20.4	31.0	39.1	26.3					32.4	13.2			13.2			$17,210	$1,735	$15,475
Parthum Middle School	Public	5-8	255 East Haverhill Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 691-7224	568	42	13.5		22 (3.9%)	7 (1.2%)	536 (94.4%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	29	333^rd of 493 public middle schools	32.5%		31.5	332^nd of 501 public middle schools	33.7%	1			21.7	15.8	24.6	34.3		24.1			34.1	18.0	26.1	29.2		26.7	24.8	23.4		24.1			$14,321	$1,391	$12,931
School for Exceptional Studies	Public, Alternative	K-12	233 Haverhill St.	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5980	102	33	3.0		3 (2.9%)	5 (4.9%)	94 (92.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)						0.0		0.0						0.0		0.0		8.3		5.6	0.0		$56,485	$6,905	$49,579
High School Learning Center	Public	9-12	1 Parker Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5917	310	16	19.8		3 (1.0%)	1 (0.3%)	305 (98.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																							$15,582	$1,725	$13,857
Guilmette Middle School	Public	5-8	80 Bodwell St	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8270	459	52	8.7		7 (1.5%)	11 (2.4%)	433 (94.3%)	6 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	19.7	392^nd of 493 public middle schools	20.5%		17.9	414^th of 501 public middle schools	17.4%	22			15.0	12.2	14.6	26.9		17.2			9.0	14.8	15.6	27.8		17.0	19.0	15.7		17.3			$17,864	$1,725	$16,139
Rollins Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	451 Howard Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8190	202	15	13.4		6 (3.0%)	4 (2.0%)	189 (93.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.0%)								(n/a)																							$17,364	$2,171	$15,193
Frost Middle School	Public	5-8	33 Hamlet Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8810	514	37	14.0		34 (6.6%)	8 (1.6%)	459 (89.3%)	10 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	21.6	380^th of 493 public middle schools	22.9%		26.8	359^th of 501 public middle schools	28.3%	21			23.3	27.3	16.8	24.8		23.0			19.8	23.2	11.5	18.0		18.0	21.6	18.8		20.1			$15,019	$1,831	$13,187
Spark Academy	Public	6-8	165 Crawford Street	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5993	437	40	10.9		16 (3.7%)	2 (0.5%)	414 (94.7%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30.8	327^th of 493 public middle schools	33.7%		34	315^th of 501 public middle schools	37.1%	12				11.9	25.4	34.7		24.5				29.7	24.8	25.0		26.4		25.7		25.7			$15,746	$1,553	$14,193
Leonard Middle School	Public	6-8	60 Allen Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8159	327	22	15.0		4 (1.2%)	2 (0.6%)	321 (98.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6.4	486^th of 493 public middle schools	1.4%		5.8	488^th of 501 public middle schools	2.6%	2				3.9	5.0	1.7		3.4				3.9	2.0	9.5		5.5		2.6		2.6			$18,139	$1,729	$16,410
Arlington Elementary	Public	K-4	150 Arlington Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8311	579	63	9.1		11 (1.9%)	5 (0.9%)	556 (96.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	5.7	903^rd of 916 public elementary schools	1.4%		8.3	882^nd of 928 public elementary schools	5.0%	21	2.9	9.1						5.9	4.9	20.2						12.4							$16,757	$1,592	$15,165
Oliver Elementary School	Public	1-5	303 Haverhill Street	Lawrence	01840	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8170	433	44	9.8		8 (1.8%)	7 (1.6%)	416 (96.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	4.9	908^th of 916 public elementary schools	0.9%		4.1	921^st of 928 public elementary schools	0.8%	13	10.3	7.5	2.1					6.3	15.6	3.7	4.2					7.5	8.3			8.3			$16,487	$1,695	$14,792
Oliver Middle School	Public	6-8	233 Haverhill Street	Lawrence	01840	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8670	351	29	12.1		11 (3.1%)	5 (1.4%)	332 (94.6%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17.1	414^th of 493 public middle schools	16.0%		13.5	439^th of 501 public middle schools	12.4%	25				11.4	14.8	25.5		17.1				10.5	10.2	25.5		15.2		14.7		14.7			$19,510	$1,693	$17,817
Lawrence Family Public Academy	Public	PK-K	526 Lowell Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 722-8030	189	18	10.5		7 (3.7%)	3 (1.6%)	176 (93.1%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	1 (0.5%)								(n/a)																							$18,901	$1,807	$17,094
Lawrence High School	Public	9-12	70-71 North Parish Road	Lawrence	01843	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-2750	3,084	234	13.1		70 (2.3%)	38 (1.2%)	2,902 (94.1%)	49 (1.6%)	1 (0.0%)	1 (0.0%)	11 (0.4%)	6.9	329^th of 348 public high schools	5.5%		7.1	329^th of 347 public high schools	5.2%								22.3								14.7				13.7		7.6	67.1	$16,935	$1,740	$15,195
RISE Academy	Public	7-12	530 Broadway Street	Lawrence	01841	Essex County	Lawrence	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 975-5905	56	9	6.3		1 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (96.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.8%)								(n/a)																							$8,459	$1,276	$7,183

Cities Near Lawrence

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Methuen	1.47 mi	6	286^th
North Andover	1.75 mi	8	106^th
Andover	2.06 mi	11	57^th
Haverhill	4.47 mi	16	309^th
Bradford	5.78 mi	2	330^th

See the top MA Massachusetts cities

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