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James Sullivan Middle School

Q: Is James Sullivan Middle School a good school?

James Sullivan Middle School ranks 352 nd of 484 Massachusetts middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades 5-8

352^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 484 Massachusetts Middle Schools

Better than 27% of Massachusetts middle schools

Summary

James Sullivan Middle School is a public middle school located in Lowell, Massachusetts, serving grades 5-8 with a total enrollment of 617 students. The school is part of the Lowell school district, which is ranked 278 out of 348 districts in Massachusetts and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

James Sullivan Middle School consistently ranks in the bottom half of Massachusetts middle schools, with proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science well below the state averages. The school's performance is particularly low for certain student subgroups. The school has a high percentage of economically disadvantaged students, with 75-80% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, and a diverse student population with significant percentages of Hispanic, Asian, and African American students.

Nearby schools in the Lowell district, such as Dr. An Wang School, James S. Daley Middle School, and B.F. Butler Middle School, generally perform better than James Sullivan Middle School on academic measures, but still struggle to meet state averages. In contrast, schools in neighboring districts, such as Justus C. Richardson Middle School in Dracut and Wood Hill Middle School in Andover, significantly outperform James Sullivan Middle School and the Lowell district schools on academic measures.

625

Students ?

12.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$21,916

Per pupil spending ?

69.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

150 Draper Street
Lowell, MA 01852

(978) 937-8993

District: Lowell

Students who attend James Sullivan Middle School usually attend:

High:	Leblanc Therapeutic Day School
	Lowell High

Feeder schools for James Sullivan Middle School:

Elementary:	Greenhalge
	John J Shaughnessy
	Moody Elementary
	Peter W Reilly
	More...
	Pyne Arts
	S Christa McAuliffe Elementary
	Washington

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

49.4%

White:

30.2%

Asian:

11.5%

See top rated Massachusetts middle schools

Compare James Sullivan Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 12th percentile in 2015 → 27th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 15 percentile points since 2015

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Massachusetts average (22% vs 41% meeting standards)

!English Language Arts scores 20 pts below the Massachusetts average

!Near the bottom of Lowell's ranking

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school22%

District avg28%

Massachusetts avg41%

352^nd of 484

Massachusetts public middle schools ?

Bottom 27%▲ up 16 pts since 2015

From bottom 12% (2015) to bottom 27% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Massachusetts Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 6Middle Schools in the Lowell

278^th of 348Lowell among Massachusetts districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	25.8	352 of 484	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	389 of 493	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.8	393 of 501	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.6	435 of 497	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.1	421 of 501	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.2	439 of 498	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.3	439 of 484	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	13.2	429 of 487	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	26.9	369 of 482	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	12.2	390 of 441	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	12.5	405 of 455	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	10.6	412 of 455	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	15.2	390 of 455	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	15.8	385 of 449	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	22.8	350 of 434	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	30.0	306 of 409	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	35.9	277 of 407	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2007	37.9	269 of 399	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2006	30.1	300 of 399	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	17.4	303 of 356	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	18.3	293 of 344	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	12.9	301 of 339	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2023	23.2	179 of 209	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.4	168 of 195	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.9	165 of 172	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	16.1	106 of 127	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	4.8	118 of 120	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.8	125 of 134	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	4.5	132 of 135	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	4.1	120 of 123	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	5.2	124 of 128	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	0.8	119 of 119	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2022	24.4	361 of 445	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.4	394 of 431	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	19.3	379 of 424	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.2	353 of 417	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	56.9	29 of 181	84.0%	★★★★☆
2024	39.1	102 of 180	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	34.4	121 of 155	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	46.7	51 of 154	66.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	42.3	60 of 135	55.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	37.0	88 of 138	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	33.9	95 of 127	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	26.5	341 of 473	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.8	361 of 481	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.5	360 of 489	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.9	441 of 494	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.6	421 of 483	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	10.9	439 of 478	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.9	434 of 463	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	28.7	272 of 376	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.2	314 of 378	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.3	294 of 364	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.2	349 of 368	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	19.5	302 of 335	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.0	274 of 322	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.9	286 of 309	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	43.8	19 of 42	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	25.2	27 of 36	25.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	39.3	15 of 26	42.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	22.9	22 of 26	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	51.7	9 of 21	57.1%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	31.7	334 of 464	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.0	404 of 469	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.7	393 of 481	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	442 of 489	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	22.6	393 of 462	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.2	398 of 452	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	13.3	412 of 438	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	25.1	351 of 473	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.0	411 of 483	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.1	416 of 489	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.4	422 of 497	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.8	396 of 485	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.0	418 of 478	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.5	426 of 466	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	31.4	282 of 435	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.1	351 of 441	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.1	352 of 444	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.2	450 of 503	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.4	426 of 489	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.4	435 of 484	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.4	437 of 467	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Tested In Person

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2021	15.6	417 of 491	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Tested Remotely

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2021	21.9	280 of 339	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2025	21.9	307 of 386	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	337 of 392	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.2	341 of 403	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.6	368 of 404	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	19.1	340 of 401	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	11.1	369 of 396	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.8	372 of 395	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

English Language Learner (2025)84th percentile+57 vs school

Homeless (2025)55th percentile+27 vs school

Special Education (2025)35th percentile+8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)28th percentile~ school

Female (2025)28th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)28th percentile~ school

Male (2025)26th percentile~ school

White (2025)20th percentile-7 vs school

Disabled (2022)19th percentile+6 vs school

Tested Remotely (2021)17th percentile~ school

Asian (2025)17th percentile-11 vs school

Tested In Person (2021)15th percentile~ school

African American (2023)14th percentile-7 vs school

By subject vs Massachusetts (2024-2025) ?

Civics27%-12 vs state

Mathematics22%-18 vs state

Science22%-20 vs state

English Language Arts21%-20 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a student
Thursday, October 31, 2019

lol

Schools Near James Sullivan Middle School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts (2025)					MCAS Next Generation Mathematics (2025)					MCAS Next Generation Science (2025)			MCAS Next Generation Civics (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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 (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	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 All Grades	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 All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Science 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Civics 8th Grade	Total
James Sullivan Middle School	Public	5-8	150 Draper Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-8993	625	50	12.4		189 (30.2%)	34 (5.4%)	309 (49.4%)	72 (11.5%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	17 (2.7%)	25.8	352^nd of 484 public middle schools	27.3%		20.2	389^th of 493 public middle schools	21.1%	37	11.8	22.3	17.7	31.8	21.2	17.4	18.1	22.1	31.3	22.3	23.2	20.0	21.5	27.2	$21,916
B.F. Butler Middle School	Public	5-8	1140 Gorham Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-8973	516	39	13.1		94 (18.2%)	35 (6.8%)	213 (41.3%)	154 (29.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (3.7%)	33.5	304^th of 484 public middle schools	37.2%		29.9	330^th of 493 public middle schools	33.1%	26	17.8	24.2	29.1	33.9	26.2	18.0	32.3	26.5	42.2	29.9	19.1	22.3	20.8	19.5	$21,153
Henry J Robinson Middle	Public	5-8	110 June Street	Lowell	01850	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-8974	600	53	11.4		120 (20.0%)	67 (11.2%)	326 (54.3%)	62 (10.3%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (3.8%)	20.8	385^th of 484 public middle schools	20.5%		17.8	407^th of 493 public middle schools	17.4%	22	13.5	22.8	22.1	18.8	19.5	8.7	16.9	24.6	23.0	18.4	12.8	15.3	14.1	21.3	$21,307
Kathryn P. Stoklosa Middle School	Public	5-8	560 Broadway Street	Lowell	01854	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 275-6330	613	48	12.7		73 (11.9%)	38 (6.2%)	226 (36.9%)	259 (42.3%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (2.4%)	38.2	281^st of 484 public middle schools	41.9%		36.6	293^rd of 493 public middle schools	40.6%	12	27.7	22.3	30.9	42.0	30.9	38.2	32.2	42.3	42.4	38.7	33.9	14.8	23.6	22.8	$21,519
Laura Lee Therapeutic Day School	Public	5-8	235 Powell Street	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7655	15	6	2.7		5 (33.3%)	1 (6.7%)	7 (46.7%)	1 (6.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (6.7%)								(n/a)					0.0					8.3					$61,065
James S Daley Middle School	Public	5-8	150 Fleming Street	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-8981	669	51	13.2		137 (20.5%)	38 (5.7%)	132 (19.7%)	337 (50.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (3.7%)	66.3	147^th of 484 public middle schools	69.6%		60.5	175^th of 493 public middle schools	64.5%	28	34.8	51.5	52.4	48.4	46.9	56.1	58.2	53.7	39.0	51.9	34.4	30.1	32.3	40.5	$21,507
John F. Ryan	Public	5-6	135 Pleasant Street	Tewksbury	01876	Middlesex County	Tewksbury	No	No	No	No	(978) 640-7880	500	43	11.6		389 (77.8%)	34 (6.8%)	45 (9.0%)	19 (3.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.4%)								(n/a)	37.9	37.0			37.5	39.5	30.1			34.9	52.6		52.6		$21,679
Dr An Wang School	Public	5-8	365 West Meadow Road	Lowell	01854	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7683	663	43	15.3		175 (26.4%)	47 (7.1%)	270 (40.7%)	141 (21.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (4.4%)	33.2	307^th of 484 public middle schools	36.6%		26.4	356^th of 493 public middle schools	27.8%	49	13.6	27.9	24.0	38.7	26.0	20.8	28.7	19.3	33.3	25.6	17.5	24.2	20.8	32.7	$20,690
Justus C. Richardson Middle School	Public	6-8	1570 Lakeview Ave	Dracut	01826	Middlesex County	Dracut	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 957-3330	916	63	14.5		581 (63.4%)	65 (7.1%)	144 (15.7%)	110 (12.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (1.7%)	51.6	208^th of 484 public middle schools	57.0%		45.2	246^th of 493 public middle schools	50.1%	38		44.9	45.6	40.2	43.7		46.4	34.7	30.8	37.4		25.7	25.7	38.0	$14,649
Wood Hill Middle School	Public	6-8	11 Cross Street	Andover	01810	Essex County	Andover	No	No	No	No	(978) 247-8800	317	36	8.9		145 (45.7%)	13 (4.1%)	49 (15.5%)	100 (31.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.5%)	90.2	57^th of 484 public middle schools	88.2%		93.6	30^th of 493 public middle schools	93.9%	27		69.3	66.7	69.9	68.6		61.7	65.7	78.5	68.1		69.9	69.9	50.5	$27,906

Frequently Asked Questions about James Sullivan Middle School

What district is James Sullivan Middle School in?

Lowell

Is James Sullivan Middle School a good school?

James Sullivan Middle School ranks 352^nd of 484 Massachusetts middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of James Sullivan Middle School?

Students at James Sullivan Middle School are 49% Hispanic, 30% White, 12% Asian, 5% African American, 3% Two or more races.

What high school do graduates of James Sullivan Middle School attend?

Students who attend James Sullivan Middle School usually go on to attend Leblanc Therapeutic Day School

How many students attend James Sullivan Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 625 students attended James Sullivan Middle School.

Rate James Sullivan Middle 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.