Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Read School

Public Grades PK, KG-8
479th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 491 Connecticut Elementary Schools
Better than 2% of Connecticut elementary schools
Summary

Read School is a public PK–8 elementary school in Bridgeport, CT, serving 863 students in a high-poverty neighborhood of the city. It is part of the Bridgeport School District, which ranks 147th out of 153 Connecticut districts. Read itself earned 0 stars from SchoolDigger and ranked 479th out of 491 Connecticut schools in 2025–2026, placing it in the 2nd percentile statewide and among the lowest-performing schools in the state. The school serves a very high-needs population, with 88.76% of students eligible for free/reduced lunch and a chronic absenteeism rate of 29.4% — lower than the district average of 31.3% but nearly double the state rate of 16.4%.

Academically, Read's test scores fall far below state averages in every subject and grade. In 8th grade, math proficiency is just 6.6% (versus 41.9% statewide) and ELA proficiency is 14.4% (versus 51.1% statewide). The middle school years are a particular weak point: in 5th grade, Read actually matches or exceeds district averages in ELA and math, but by 7th and 8th grade it falls 10–12 points below district averages. Subgroup outcomes are also sobering — female and male students rank in the bottom 1% of schools statewide, and special education and low-income subgroups rank below the 10th percentile. Several nearby schools with similar demographics achieve substantially better results: Madison School (89.8% free/reduced lunch) ranks 411th statewide, and Hallen School posts 3rd grade math proficiency of 36.1% versus Read's 15.3%.

Read also faces notable resource challenges. Its student–teacher ratio of 17.9 is the highest among nearby reporting schools, up from 13.5 just two years ago. Chronic absenteeism has remained persistently high, ranging from 24.8% to 34.7% over the past five years. By comparison, Park City Magnet School — with similar poverty levels — has a chronic absenteeism rate of just 14.7% and ranks 382nd statewide. The fact that neighboring schools under the same district constraints achieve better outcomes suggests that meaningful improvement at Read is possible with targeted interventions focused on middle school instruction, absenteeism, and resource allocation.

863
Students ?
17.9
Student/teacher ratio ?
$15,485
Per pupil spending ?
88.8%
Free/discounted lunch ?
Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
63.6%
African American:
26.8%
White:
6.6%
more
 See top rated Connecticut elementary schools

 Compare Read School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Holding steady — 3rd percentile in 2016 → 2nd in 2026
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Connecticut average (14% vs 50% meeting standards)
!In the lower quartile statewide (2nd percentile)
!High chronic absenteeism (29% vs 16% Connecticut)
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school14%
District avg18%
Connecticut avg50%
Elementary school
479th of 491
Connecticut public elementary schools ?
Bottom 2%▼ down 1 pts since 2016
See the entire ranking list of Connecticut Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
Middle school
247th of 258
Connecticut public middle schools ?
Bottom 4%▬ steady since 2016
See the entire ranking list of Connecticut Middle Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
15th of 18Elementary Schools in the Bridgeport School District
147th of 153Bridgeport School District among Connecticut districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Elementary school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20264.9479 of 4912.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20256.0476 of 4933.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20245.4486 of 4972.2%☆☆☆☆☆
20237.4457 of 4916.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20227.6447 of 4908.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20216.9512 of 5384.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20196.6480 of 5228.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20186.5489 of 5328.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20174.8495 of 5194.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20163.4502 of 5183.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20157.0513 of 5516.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20136.7527 of 5575.4%☆☆☆☆☆
201210.4517 of 5648.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20119.5527 of 5656.7%☆☆☆☆☆
201013.0521 of 57910.0%★☆☆☆☆
20095.6537 of 5665.1%☆☆☆☆☆
200810.4514 of 5659.0%☆☆☆☆☆
200710.7519 of 5688.6%☆☆☆☆☆
200617.3493 of 57013.5%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202113.136 of 4112.2%★☆☆☆☆
201922.318 of 2114.3%★☆☆☆☆
201815.624 of 254.0%☆☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20252.8231 of 2320.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20215.1444 of 4552.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20191.9238 of 2421.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20182.6255 of 2591.5%☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202617.0118 of 1298.5%☆☆☆☆☆
202519.1114 of 13213.6%★☆☆☆☆
202414.8105 of 1115.4%☆☆☆☆☆
202334.175 of 10830.6%★★☆☆☆
202122.9134 of 17322.5%★☆☆☆☆
201922.590 of 11219.6%★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202112.1279 of 3027.6%☆☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20253.9237 of 2390.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20216.5413 of 4457.2%☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202110.5348 of 3716.2%☆☆☆☆☆
Middle school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20266.3247 of 2584.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20257.9236 of 2526.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20248.0235 of 2506.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20239.7220 of 24911.6%★☆☆☆☆
202210.1219 of 25012.4%★☆☆☆☆
20219.0253 of 2758.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20199.7226 of 25912.7%★☆☆☆☆
20186.6234 of 2496.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20175.1238 of 2504.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20164.8235 of 2464.5%☆☆☆☆☆
20158.9251 of 28010.4%★☆☆☆☆
20134.1260 of 2786.5%☆☆☆☆☆
201210.5244 of 27210.3%★☆☆☆☆
201113.7230 of 26914.5%★☆☆☆☆
201013.3228 of 26814.9%★☆☆☆☆
20098.5229 of 25510.2%★☆☆☆☆
20088.3222 of 25211.9%★☆☆☆☆
20079.5212 of 25015.2%★☆☆☆☆
200610.4213 of 24814.1%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202122.470 of 8012.5%★☆☆☆☆
201935.526 of 3831.6%★★☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20256.3155 of 1645.5%☆☆☆☆☆
20219.2213 of 2359.4%☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202524.679 of 10524.8%★☆☆☆☆
202417.897 of 1046.7%☆☆☆☆☆
202331.969 of 9930.3%★★☆☆☆
202236.951 of 9747.4%★★☆☆☆
202120.6122 of 14616.4%★☆☆☆☆
201931.467 of 9730.9%★★☆☆☆
201831.749 of 7534.7%★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202112.7197 of 2189.6%★☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
20253.4161 of 1620.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20216.6211 of 2245.8%☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankConnecticut percentileRating
202111.2223 of 2448.6%☆☆☆☆☆
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)
Elementary school
African American (2021)12th percentile+7 vs school
Hispanic (2026)9th percentile+6 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2021)8th percentile+3 vs school
Special Education (2021)6th percentile~ school
Male (2025)1st percentile-3 vs school
Female (2025)<1st percentile-3 vs school
Middle school
Hispanic (2025)25th percentile+18 vs school
African American (2021)12th percentile+4 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2021)10th percentile~ school
Special Education (2021)9th percentile~ school
Female (2025)5th percentile~ school
Male (2025)1st percentile-6 vs school
By subject vs Connecticut (2025-2026) ?
Science19%-33 vs state
English Language Arts15%-36 vs state
Mathematics11%-36 vs state

No ratings yet
Be the first to rate Read School and help other families decide.
Rate Read School
Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.
Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.
Tap a star to rate
Reviews
No written reviews yet. If you know this school, be the first to share what stands out.



Schools Near Read School

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private






Frequently Asked Questions about Read School

In the 2024-25 school year, 863 students attended Read School.

Students at Read School are 64% Hispanic, 27% African American, 7% White, 2% Two or more races.

Read School ranks in the bottom 2.4% of Connecticut elementary schools.

Rate Read School!



Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Read School!


Latest Connecticut data All new data »
2024–25 through 2025–26 attendance data & graduation ratesNewAug 31, 2026
2025–26 NGSS, SAT & SBAC test scoresNewAug 31, 2026
2024–25 school spending dataApr 2, 2026
2024–25 attendance dataNov 6, 2025


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.

Diagnostics