Summary:
The Cromwell School District operates two elementary schools—Woodside Intermediate School (grades 3-5, 440 students) and Edna C. Stevens School (Pre-K to grade 2, 413 students)—serving 853 students in a clean PK-5 pipeline. Woodside is the academic standout, improving its state ranking from the 49th to 58th percentile over the past two years and scoring above state averages in every subject. Edna C. Stevens provides the early-primary foundation with a better student-teacher ratio of 11.1:1 compared to Woodside's 13.4:1.
Economic need is moderate and similar across both schools, with 32.2% of students at Edna C. Stevens and 29.6% at Woodside eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The most significant contrast is attendance: Woodside's chronic absenteeism is remarkably low at 7.4%, whereas Edna C. Stevens is notably higher at 14.5%—above the district's 12.2% average, though still below the state's 16.4%. Per-student spending is nearly identical, with Woodside at $13,483 and Edna C. Stevens at $13,617.
Test scores at Woodside show steady growth in ELA, climbing from 52.3% proficiency in 3rd grade to 68.6% in 5th grade. Math tells a different story: while 3rd and 4th graders excel (62.3% and 61.7%), 5th-grade math drops to just 48.1%, a concerning 4.8-point year-over-year decline. Since these schools act as one integrated system, Edna C. Stevens' higher absenteeism could affect academic readiness down the line at Woodside. Overall, Cromwell ranks in the middle of Connecticut districts (53rd percentile, 3 stars), with strong momentum at Woodside and clear room for growth in early-childhood attendance at Edna C. Stevens.
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