Schools in Durham, CT

Durham, Connecticut, is served by three public schools in Regional School District 13, covering pre-kindergarten through grade 12 with about 889 students. The district ranks at the 50th percentile of Connecticut districts, yet the schools themselves vary in performance: Frederick Brewster School serves the youngest learners in grades PK–1, Frank Ward Strong School covers grades 5–8, and Coginchaug Regional High School serves grades 9–12. With free or reduced-price lunch eligibility around 15–18% and student-teacher ratios between 8.8 and 10.4, these are well-resourced schools in a relatively low-poverty community.

Among the three, Coginchaug Regional High School is the clear academic standout, ranking in the 83rd percentile of Connecticut high schools with four stars—and reaching the 86th percentile in 2021–2022. Its 11th grade ELA proficiency is 77.5% and science is 74.2%, well above state averages of 55.3% and 50.5%, while its 92.5% graduation rate edges out the statewide 91.2%. Frank Ward Strong School is above average but more inconsistent, ranking in the 67th percentile after slipping from the 72nd. Its ELA scores remain solid across grades 5–8, ranging from 54% to 72.4%, but math proficiency swings dramatically—from just 35.4% in grade 5 to 56.7% in grade 7. Frederick Brewster School, an early-elementary school with no state test data, earns distinction for attendance instead, posting a district-best 5.1% chronic absenteeism rate.

Attendance is a district-wide strength, with every Durham school keeping chronic absenteeism below 9%—about half the state average of 16.4%. The district is also generous with resources, spending roughly $21,200 to $21,900 per student, though these figures date to 2018–2019. Notably, Coginchaug Regional High School far outpaces the district's mid-tier overall rank, suggesting other schools in Regional School District 13 may be pulling the district-wide figure down. The biggest red flag is the 5th-grade math dip at Frank Ward Strong School, where proficiency trails the state by more than 10 points—possibly a transition or cohort issue worth watching. Overall, these small, well-funded schools deliver strong attendance and generally above-average academics.