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Best Public Schools in Meriden, CT

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At a glance

Schools

8,789

Students

Districts

Top rankedNathan Hale School147^th of 491 Connecticut elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Hanover School up 38 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

H. C. Wilcox Technical High School 11.7 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

4★

3★

2★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

Compare Connecticut cities →See the top-ranked Connecticut schools →

Summary:

Meriden, Connecticut is served by 14 public schools enrolling about 8,789 students — eight elementary schools (PK–5), three middle schools (6–8), and three high schools (9–12). Most belong to the Meriden School District, ranked 103rd out of 153 Connecticut districts (33rd percentile, 2-star rating), while H. C. Wilcox Technical High School belongs to the Connecticut Technical Education and Career System, ranked 139th (9th percentile, 0-star). Enrollment ranges from 357 students at Benjamin Franklin School to 1,291 at Francis T. Maloney High School, and the median free/reduced lunch rate is roughly 77%.

Thomas Hooker School and Nathan Hale School are the top elementary performers, both earning 4-star ratings at the 70th percentile statewide. Hooker leads in math (3rd grade: 79.5% vs. 52.2% statewide), while Nathan Hale posts excellent 5th grade ELA (82.9% vs. 53.5%) and has the lowest per-student spending in the district ($12,486). At the middle level, Edison Middle School is the clear standout, earning 3 stars (57th percentile) and far outperforming Lincoln Middle School and Washington Middle School while keeping chronic absenteeism at just 10.9%. Among high schools, Francis T. Maloney High School is the strongest comprehensive option (92nd of 133, 89.1% graduation), while H. C. Wilcox Technical High School has the city's highest graduation rate (96.7%) and lowest chronic absenteeism (13.6%).

Meriden's elementary schools are a clear bright spot — average 3rd grade math proficiency (~64%) and 5th grade ELA (~58.6%) exceed state averages despite high poverty levels. The biggest red flag is high school math, where Francis T. Maloney High School (15.9%), Orville H. Platt High School (8.1%), and H. C. Wilcox Technical High School (5.6%) all fall far below the 31.3% state average. Chronic absenteeism at Maloney (29.2%) and Platt (27.3%) is nearly double the state rate, while top elementary schools stay below 12%. Notably, per-student spending does not predict success — Nathan Hale School spends the least and performs among the best, while Hanover School spends the most ($18,119) yet ranks in the 42nd percentile.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				NGSS Science (2026)			SAT English Language Arts (2026)	SAT Math (2026)	SBAC English Language Arts (2026)						SBAC Mathematics (2026)						Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	NGSS Science 5th Grade	NGSS Science 8th Grade	NGSS Science 11th Grade	SAT English Language Arts 11th Grade	SAT Math 11th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 3rd Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 4th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 5th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 6th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 7th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 8th Grade	SBAC Mathematics 3rd Grade	SBAC Mathematics 4th Grade	SBAC Mathematics 5th Grade	SBAC Mathematics 6th Grade	SBAC Mathematics 7th Grade	SBAC Mathematics 8th Grade	Total
H. C. Wilcox Technical High School	Public	9-12	298 Oregon Rd.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System	No	No	No	No	(203) 238-6260	753	64	11.7	45.6%	288 (38.2%)	45 (6.0%)	365 (48.5%)	8 (1.1%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (5.3%)								(n/a)					5.6													$30,330
Benjamin Franklin School	Public	PK, KG-5	426 West Main St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 235-7997	357	25	14.5	68.6%	95 (26.6%)	47 (13.2%)	183 (51.3%)	5 (1.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (7.3%)	64.3	200^th of 491 public elementary schools	59.3%		65.5	200^th of 493 public elementary schools	59.4%		68.8					54.1	54.3	56.3				72.1	65.7	52.1				$17,414
Casimir Pulaski School	Public	PK, KG-5	100 Clearview Ave.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 238-1273	539	37	14.5	87.4%	86 (16.0%)	53 (9.8%)	367 (68.1%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (5.8%)	47.3	261^st of 491 public elementary schools	46.8%		38.8	285^th of 493 public elementary schools	42.2%	24	51.6					48.1	49.5	40.9				65.1	48.3	47.8				$14,636
Francis T. Maloney High School	Public	9-12	121 Gravel St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	No	(203) 238-2334	1,291	80	16.2	73.5%	280 (21.7%)	157 (12.2%)	760 (58.9%)	39 (3.0%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (3.9%)	24.8	92^nd of 133 public high schools	30.8%		30.3	88^th of 141 public high schools	37.6%	4			31.0	43.8	15.9													$16,765
Hanover School	Public	PK, KG-5	208 Main St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 235-6359	456	40	11.6	62.1%	100 (21.9%)	35 (7.7%)	286 (62.7%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (6.6%)	40.5	285^th of 491 public elementary schools	42.0%		30.1	323^rd of 493 public elementary schools	34.5%	38	47.1					32.5	39.7	43.7				44.6	64.5	54.0				$15,503
Israel Putnam School	Public	PK, KG-5	133 Parker Ave.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 237-8493	445	31	14.4	81.1%	77 (17.3%)	68 (15.3%)	249 (56.0%)	12 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (8.8%)	72.3	168^th of 491 public elementary schools	65.8%		66.7	188^th of 493 public elementary schools	61.9%	20	61.5					62.1	65.8	66.7				72.4	67.1	59.0				$15,294
John Barry School	Public	PK, KG-5	124 Columbia St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 237-8831	418	29	14.4	86.8%	40 (9.6%)	51 (12.2%)	289 (69.1%)	6 (1.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.4%)	54.7	241^st of 491 public elementary schools	50.9%		53.5	241^st of 493 public elementary schools	51.1%							42.3	47.9	61.4				55.1	60.6	61.4				$16,862
Lincoln Middle School	Public	6-8	164 Centennial Ave.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 238-2381	684	45	15.0	78.5%	117 (17.1%)	62 (9.1%)	464 (67.8%)	5 (0.7%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (5.1%)	37	149^th of 258 public middle schools	42.2%		30	159^th of 252 public middle schools	36.9%	10		36.0							47.3	39.8	42.7				43.3	36.1	30.2	$15,818
Nathan Hale School	Public	PK, KG-5	277 Atkins St. Ext.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 237-7486	485	32	15.3	76.1%	100 (20.6%)	51 (10.5%)	299 (61.6%)	10 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (5.2%)	75.8	147^th of 491 public elementary schools	70.1%		69	178^th of 493 public elementary schools	63.9%	31						63.4	54.5	82.9				75.6	66.3	73.7				$15,348
Orville H. Platt High School	Public	9-12	220 Coe Ave.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	No	(203) 235-7963	1,191	69	17.3	80.9%	211 (17.7%)	153 (12.8%)	764 (64.1%)	14 (1.2%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (3.7%)	19.1	103^rd of 133 public high schools	22.6%		15.7	118^th of 141 public high schools	16.3%	15			32.4		8.1													$16,382
Roger Sherman School	Public	PK, KG-5	64 North Pearl St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 238-1286	457	34	13.6	84.5%	60 (13.1%)	49 (10.7%)	308 (67.4%)	12 (2.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	25 (5.5%)	57.3	229^th of 491 public elementary schools	53.4%		56.7	232^nd of 493 public elementary schools	52.9%	3						47.6	57.8	58.4				47.6	56.6	67.3				$15,047
Thomas Hooker School	Public	PK, KG-5	70 Overlook Rd.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 237-8839	404	26	15.4	59.4%	94 (23.3%)	22 (5.4%)	259 (64.1%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.5%)	75.4	148^th of 491 public elementary schools	69.9%		80.3	106^th of 493 public elementary schools	78.5%	42						69.2	60.5					79.5	60.5	65.7				$15,060
Washington Middle School	Public	6-8	1225 North Broad St.	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	Yes	(203) 235-6606	536	39	13.6	86.4%	97 (18.1%)	76 (14.2%)	331 (61.8%)	10 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (3.9%)	27.4	169^th of 258 public middle schools	34.5%		25.4	169^th of 252 public middle schools	32.9%			33.3							41.7	34.6	40.2				30.6	26.6	26.9	$17,920
Edison Middle School	Public	6-8	1355 North Broad Street	Meriden	06450	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region	Meriden School District	No	No	No	No	(203) 379-2590	773	54	14.2	74.5%	169 (21.9%)	92 (11.9%)	464 (60.0%)	11 (1.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (4.7%)	57.2	110^th of 258 public middle schools	57.4%		57.7	103^rd of 252 public middle schools	59.1%	7		52.3							66.1	55.6	59.0				52.7	36.1	33.3	$15,764

Cities Near Meriden

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Yalesville	3.23 mi	1	77^th
Wallingford	3.76 mi	11	122^nd
Middlefield	4.01 mi	1	118^th
Plantsville	4.77 mi	5	53^rd
Middletown	4.99 mi	14	157^th

See the top CT Connecticut cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Connecticut Department of 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.