Holmes Elementary School

Summary:

Holmes Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Dorchester, MA that serves 280 students from pre-kindergarten to 6th grade. The school is part of the Boston school district, which is ranked 305 out of 351 districts in Massachusetts and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite having a relatively low student-teacher ratio and high spending per student, Holmes Elementary School consistently ranks in the bottom 20% of Massachusetts elementary schools and significantly underperforms on state assessments compared to the state and district averages. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, only 24.29% of students were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 39.17% statewide and 26.91% in Boston. In Mathematics, only 17.14% of students were proficient or better, compared to 40.91% statewide and 26.39% in Boston. This persistent academic underperformance suggests the school may be struggling to effectively deliver core academic instruction and support to its students.

When compared to nearby schools in the Boston district, such as UP Academy Holland and Lee Academy, Holmes Elementary School performs significantly worse on academic measures, despite having a lower student-teacher ratio and higher spending per student. This suggests that factors beyond just resource allocation, such as school leadership, instructional quality, and targeted interventions, may be contributing to the differences in academic performance between Holmes Elementary School and its neighbors.


Detail:

Public PK, KG-6

 40 School Street
       Dorchester, MA  02124


(617) 635-8681

District: Boston

SchoolDigger Rank:
772nd of 916 Massachusetts Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $29,700 Help


Student/teacher ratio:  8.2 Help
Number of students:  280

Racial breakdown:

African American:
55.4%
Hispanic:
37.1%
Two or more races:
4.3%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  77.6% Help


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Performance Trends
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Compare Details Holmes Elementary School ranks worse than 84.3% of elementary schools in Massachusetts. It also ranks 39th among 66 ranked elementary schools in the Boston School District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 17.34. (See more...)
Student Body
Help
Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (55.4%), Hispanic (37.1%), two or more races (4.3%). (See more...)
Teachers
Help
Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Holmes Elementary School is 8.2, which is the 10th best among 66 elementary schools in the Boston School District. (See more...)
Help
Compare Holmes Elementary School employs 33.9 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Holmes Elementary School is $29,700, which is the 19th highest among 66 elementary schools in the Boston School District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Holmes Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Holmes Elementary School 772nd of 916 Massachusetts public elementary schools. (See Holmes Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
African American students:
Hispanic students:


Boston:

SchoolDigger ranks Boston 305th of 351 Massachusetts school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Holmes Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2003 4.91 844th 884 4.5%
2004 5.86 847th 882 4.0%
2005 5.98 851st 887 4.1%
2006 18.83 766th 911 15.9%
2007 17.16 785th 911 13.8%
2008 28.63 708th 908 22.0%
2009 22.42 749th 909 17.6%
2010 20.35 779th 920 15.3%
2011 7.45 879th 924 4.9%
2012 7.71 875th 930 5.9%
2013 6.94 880th 928 5.2%
2014 6.66 890th 926 3.9%
2015 14.90 808th 914 11.6%
2016 6.15 903rd 932 3.1%
2017 6.57 901st 938 3.9%
2018 17.23 810th 934 13.3%
2019 12.50 863rd 942 8.4%
2021 9.17 885th 936 5.4%
2022 13.38 826th 932 11.4%
2023 11.66 851st 928 8.3%
2024 17.34 772nd 916 15.7%
See the entire list of Massachusetts Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 34.12 651st 886 26.5%
2019 29.14 710th 896 20.8%
2021 16.22 832nd 894 6.9%
2022 27.37 707th 905 21.9%
2023 33.02 459th 703 34.7%
2024 34.22 471st 731 35.6%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 37.97 471st 685 31.2%
2019 32.28 519th 700 25.9%
2021 17.13 659th 705 6.5%
2022 30.68 581st 772 24.7%
2023 24.83 633rd 757 16.4%
2024 40.65 460th 760 39.5%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 33.34 636th 893 28.8%
2019 19.60 766th 902 15.1%
2021 8.90 863rd 898 3.9%
2022 13.59 803rd 901 10.9%
2023 7.20 860th 887 3.0%
2024 14.95 786th 886 11.3%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 47.82 286th 656 56.4%
2019 39.94 372nd 665 44.1%
2021 33.52 417th 632 34.0%
2022 29.68 474th 672 29.5%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Male students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 12.25 825th 898 8.1%
2019 10.12 853rd 907 6.0%
2021 11.97 824th 904 8.8%
2022 15.49 793rd 908 12.7%
2023 14.02 798th 896 10.9%
2024 23.93 691st 891 22.4%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Tested In Person students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 10.50 860th 925 7.0%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Tested In Person Students!

Rank History for Tested Remotely students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 18.69 344th 399 13.8%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Tested Remotely Students!

Rank History for African American students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 49.40 84th 174 51.7%
2019 48.21 85th 172 50.6%
2021 30.74 127th 166 23.5%
2022 23.79 146th 173 15.6%
2023 20.80 152nd 167 9.0%
2024 34.92 116th 167 30.5%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Holmes Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools MA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 33.21 273rd 379 28.0%
2019 24.12 336th 398 15.6%
2021 15.00 368th 379 2.9%
2022 69.49 74th 401 81.5%
2023 49.88 171st 420 59.3%
2024 52.27 166th 446 62.8%
See the entire list of Best Massachusetts Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Data source: test scores: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary 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.

Holmes Elementary School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 







Data source: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

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Enrollment information for Holmes Elementary School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1992 21 79 2 5 0 n/a n/a 0 107
1993 35 117 3 8 0 n/a n/a 0 163
1994 36 141 4 11 0 n/a n/a 0 192
1995 21 175 8 15 1 n/a n/a 0 220
1996 21 175 8 15 1 n/a n/a 0 220
1997 15 198 7 23 1 n/a n/a 0 244
1998 17 208 5 25 1 n/a n/a 0 256
1999 10 116 1 18 0 n/a n/a 0 145
2000 11 196 3 29 3 n/a n/a 0 242
2001 11 204 2 27 2 n/a n/a 0 246
2002 6 168 5 32 3 n/a n/a 0 214
2003 6 168 5 32 3 n/a n/a 0 214
2004 6 163 3 35 2 n/a n/a 0 209
2005 9 160 3 26 0 n/a n/a 0 198
2006 8 154 5 37 1 n/a n/a 6 211
2007 6 136 1 43 0 n/a n/a 4 190
2008 6 148 3 32 1 n/a n/a 3 193
2009 8 140 3 40 1 0 4 0 196
2010 7 209 6 52 1 1 3 0 279
2011 8 211 4 69 1 1 4 0 298
2012 6 214 5 90 1 1 9 0 326
2013 12 208 5 76 2 1 14 0 318
2014 7 211 7 84 2 3 17 0 331
2015 9 207 9 89 0 3 18 0 335
2016 13 219 11 96 2 4 22 0 367
2017 10 222 10 102 1 2 21 0 368
2018 10 204 11 100 0 2 20 0 347
2019 9 193 8 104 0 0 21 0 335
2020 13 165 9 95 0 0 12 0 294
2021 8 148 7 99 0 0 12 0 274
2022 6 148 3 87 0 0 10 0 254
2023 6 155 3 104 0 0 12 0 280

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 Holmes Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1992 107 n/a n/a n/a
1993 163 n/a 0.0 n/a
1994 192 n/a n/a n/a
1995 220 n/a 0.0 n/a
1996 220 n/a 0.0 n/a
1997 244 n/a 0.0 n/a
1998 256 n/a 0.0 n/a
1999 145 n/a 0.0 94.5
2000 242 n/a 0.0 82.6
2001 246 n/a 0.0 82.9
2002 214 n/a n/a 85.5
2003 214 n/a n/a 85.5
2004 209 17.6 11.9 86.1
2005 198 18.2 10.9 87.4
2006 211 15.0 14.1 90.7
2007 190 19.0 10.0 89.8
2008 193 19.4 9.9 85.8
2009 196 17.9 10.9 82.7
2010 279 25.5 10.9 85.7
2011 298 23.9 12.4 82.9
2012 326 24.7 13.1 83.4
2013 318 27.8 11.4 84
2014 331 23.3 14.1 86.4
2015 335 24.0 13.9 77.6
2016 367 22.0 16.6 n/a
2017 368 23.9 15.3 n/a
2018 347 27.5 12.6 n/a
2019 335 34.7 9.6 n/a
2020 294 28.1 10.4 n/a
2021 274 31.9 8.5 n/a
2022 254 26.6 9.5 n/a
2023 280 33.9 8.2 n/a

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 Holmes Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1992 107 n/a n/a n/a
1993 163 n/a 0.0 n/a
1994 192 n/a n/a n/a
1995 220 n/a 0.0 n/a
1996 220 n/a 0.0 n/a
1997 244 n/a 0.0 n/a
1998 256 n/a 0.0 n/a
1999 145 n/a 0.0 94.5
2000 242 n/a 0.0 82.6
2001 246 n/a 0.0 82.9
2002 214 n/a n/a 85.5
2003 214 n/a n/a 85.5
2004 209 17.6 11.9 86.1
2005 198 18.2 10.9 87.4
2006 211 15.0 14.1 90.7
2007 190 19.0 10.0 89.8
2008 193 19.4 9.9 85.8
2009 196 17.9 10.9 82.7
2010 279 25.5 10.9 85.7
2011 298 23.9 12.4 82.9
2012 326 24.7 13.1 83.4
2013 318 27.8 11.4 84
2014 331 23.3 14.1 86.4
2015 335 24.0 13.9 77.6
2016 367 22.0 16.6 n/a
2017 368 23.9 15.3 n/a
2018 347 27.5 12.6 n/a
2019 335 34.7 9.6 n/a
2020 294 28.1 10.4 n/a
2021 274 31.9 8.5 n/a
2022 254 26.6 9.5 n/a
2023 280 33.9 8.2 n/a

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 Holmes Elementary School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $1,700 (6.3%) $25,191 (93.7%) $26,891
2020 $1,278 (4.8%) $25,608 (95.2%) $26,886
2021 $2,009 (6.8%) $27,691 (93.2%) $29,700

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

Impact of COVID-19 on Holmes Elementary 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 863rd of 942 Elementary schoolsRanks 851st of 928 Elementary schools
 0.1%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Holmes Elementary School)3123.3
 7.7%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Boston)3932.2
 6.8%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Massachusetts)5643.9
 12.1%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Holmes Elementary School)292.3
 26.7%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Boston)3427.7
 6.3%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Massachusetts)4941
 8%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Holmes Elementary School)2822.7
 5.3%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Boston)3326.1
 6.9%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Massachusetts)5239.7
 12.3%
4th Grade Mathematics (Holmes Elementary School)1922.7
 3.7%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Boston)3327.6
 5.4%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Massachusetts)4945
 4%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Holmes Elementary School)366.7
 29.3%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Boston)3831.6
 6.4%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Massachusetts)5243.8
 8.2%
5th Grade Mathematics (Holmes Elementary School)350
 35%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Boston)3424.8
 9.2%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Massachusetts)4940.9
 8.2%
5th Grade Science (Holmes Elementary School)223.3
 18.7%
   5th Grade Science (Boston)2423.5
 0.5%
   5th Grade Science (Massachusetts)4841.6
 6.4%
All Grades English Language Arts (Holmes Elementary School)3220.6
 11.5%
   All Grades English Language Arts (Boston)3629.3
 6.7%
   All Grades English Language Arts (Massachusetts)5242.3
 9.7%
All Grades Mathematics (Holmes Elementary School)2711.6
 15.4%
   All Grades Mathematics (Boston)3325.6
 7.4%
   All Grades Mathematics (Massachusetts)4940.6
 8.4%
All Grades Science (Holmes Elementary School)223.3
 18.7%
   All Grades Science (Boston)2523.1
 1.9%
   All Grades Science (Massachusetts)4741.2
 5.8%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students335280
 16.4%
African American193155
 19.7%
American Indian00
Asian83
 62.5%
Hispanic104104
Pacific Islander00
White96
 33.3%
Two or More Races2112
 42.9%


Schools Near Holmes Elementary School









Frequently Asked Questions about Holmes Elementary School

Students at Holmes Elementary School are 55% African American, 37% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 2% White, 1% Asian.

Holmes Elementary School ranks in the bottom 15.7% of Massachusetts elementary schools.

In the 2022-23 school year, 280 students attended Holmes Elementary 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 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.





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