Greenwich where all children are above average

Ten of Greenwich's fifteen public schools were named by the Connecticut Department of Education as "Schools of Distinction" for the 2024-25 school year. This was the highest number of Greenwich schools that made the list this year.

Greenwich has increased its presence on the list over the years. In 2021-22, there were 4 Greenwich Schools on the list, in 2022-23 there were 7, and in 2023-24 there were 8.

The schools earn the "Schools of Distinction" recognition based on their performance in the State's "Next Generation Accountability System." Twelve factors are considered in the rating: academic achievement, academic growth, chronic absenteeism, college and career readiness, high school graduation, post-secondary enrollment, physical fitness, and the arts.

Don't jump to the conclusion that this high rating is the best tool for predicting whether your child will get into a good college. The success of high needs students (economically disadvantaged, English learners, and Students with Disabilities) receive extra weighting in this index. The school cannot achieve a high overall rating in this index without demonstrating strong performance and growth for its most disadvantaged students.

The ten Greenwich schools were all elementary schools listed here:

North Mianus rated 94.1

Parkway rated 89.9

International School at Dundee 89.3

New Lebanon rated 89.3.

North Street rated 89.2

Riverside 88.6

Glenville School rated 86.7

Old Greenwich rated 85.4

Julian Curtiss rated 84.7

Hamilton Avenue rated 84.1

Not included on the list:

Greenwich High School rated 84.6

Eastern Middle rated 82.6

Central Middle rated 77.4

Cos Cob 78.1

Western Middle 72.8

Superintendent Jones attributed this recognition to the consistent curriculum throughout the schools. She says the district uses "Big Ideas Math" and has a strong phonics program.

Between the Lines: If you are concerned about which school will most prepare your child to attend a top college, you would focus on metrics of academic rigor rather than on broad indices from the State that give substantial weight to equity and non-academic factors like this one. For those data points you would turn to ratings from U.S. News here or Niche here.

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