Best Public Schools in Guilford, CT

Guilford, Connecticut is served by a single public school district — the Guilford School District — with 7 schools (4 elementary, 2 middle, and 1 high school) enrolling roughly 3,051 students; the district ranks 54th out of 153 Connecticut districts with 3 stars, though individual schools often far exceed that district-level signal.

The clear standout is E.C. Adams Middle School, which earned 5 stars in three consecutive years and ranks in the 90th–94th percentile statewide, beating Connecticut averages by 20 to 30 percentage points in every tested subject. Calvin Leete School posted the district's best elementary ranking — 14th out of 497 schools (97th percentile, 5 stars) — with roughly 80% of 3rd graders proficient in both ELA and math. Guilford High School ranks 20th out of 133 high schools with an excellent 96.7% graduation rate, but its math proficiency (53.5%) trails its ELA (80.5%) considerably. Among remaining elementary schools, A.W. Cox School is a steady 4-star performer in the 73rd percentile with the district's lowest student-teacher ratio (10.2), while Melissa Jones School has slipped from the 81st to the 57th percentile and is the only Guilford school with a below-state score (44.6% in 3rd grade math). Guilford Lakes School holds a solid 4-star rating in the 73rd percentile.

Math is the district's most consistent weak spot, trailing ELA proficiency at nearly every grade level, though scores remain above state averages in most schools. Chronic absenteeism is lowest at Melissa Jones (3.3%) but highest at Guilford High (13.2%), with all schools still below the state average of 16.4%. Small elementary cohorts (213–369 students) cause dramatic year-to-year score swings that should be interpreted cautiously, and the district's unusual split — A. Baldwin Middle School (grades 5–6) feeding into E.C. Adams (grades 7–8) and then Guilford High — creates a strong academic pipeline that serves students well overall.