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Buckley School

Q: Is Buckley School a good school?

Buckley School ranks 264 th of 492 Connecticut elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-4

264^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 492 Connecticut Elementary Schools

Better than 46% of Connecticut elementary schools

Summary

Buckley School is a K–4 elementary school in Manchester, CT, serving 284 students in a district that overall ranks in the bottom 16% of Connecticut districts. Despite that challenging context, Buckley has consistently outperformed the Manchester School District by a wide margin, ranking in recent years between the 46th and 72nd percentile statewide — a standout in a district rated 1 star.

The school's academic results are striking. In 2024–2025, Buckley's 4th grade ELA proficiency was 72.2% and math was 70.4%, compared to district averages of 38.0% and 31.1%. Even more impressive, despite 52.5% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch, Buckley ranked 9th out of 77 schools statewide for low-socioeconomic-status students — the 88th percentile. Chronic absenteeism is also a major strength, averaging about 13.3% over the past five years compared to 25.0% for the district. The student-teacher ratio of 10.2 is among the lowest in the area, similar to Highland Park School.

Within Manchester, only Highland Park School currently ranks higher, but in 2024–2025 Buckley was the district's strongest performer by a clear margin. Buckley's results even rival wealthier neighboring districts — its 4th grade scores exceeded Bolton Center School's despite Bolton having a much lower poverty rate, and came close to Orchard Hill School's in South Windsor. The most recent year (2025–2026) showed a pullback to the 46th percentile, and with only 284 students, year-to-year swings can be large. Still, Buckley's combination of strong academics, excellent attendance, and exceptional support for low-income students makes it a notable bright spot for families considering schools in the greater Manchester area.

284

Students ?

10.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,845

Per pupil spending ?

52.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

250 Vernon Street
Manchester, CT 06042

(860) 647-3302

District: Manchester School District

Students who attend Buckley School usually attend:

Middle:	Illing Middle School
High:	Manchester High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

34.9%

Hispanic:

25.4%

African American:

22.9%

See top rated Connecticut elementary schools

Compare Buckley School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 58th percentile in 2015 → 46th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 12 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school50%

District avg41%

Connecticut avg51%

264^th of 492

Connecticut public elementary schools ?

Bottom 46%▼ down 9 pts since 2016

From top 44% (2016) to bottom 46% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Connecticut Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 6Elementary Schools in the Manchester School District

127^th of 153Manchester 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Connecticut percentile	Rating
2026	47.2	264 of 492	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	72.9	159 of 493	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	76.1	138 of 497	72.2%	★★★★☆
2023	58.5	209 of 491	57.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	34.8	305 of 490	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.0	324 of 538	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	38.5	329 of 532	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2017	48.7	268 of 519	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2016	58.3	229 of 518	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	63.3	234 of 551	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2013	64.6	270 of 557	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2012	76.3	136 of 564	75.9%	★★★★☆
2011	70.8	208 of 565	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2010	62.9	294 of 579	49.2%	★★☆☆☆
2009	72.8	192 of 566	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2008	70.3	216 of 565	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2007	75.6	146 of 568	74.3%	★★★★☆
2006	78.7	108 of 570	81.1%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Connecticut percentile	Rating
2025	87.3	9 of 77	88.3%	★★★★☆
2021	69.9	68 of 302	77.5%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Connecticut percentile	Rating
2021	33.4	276 of 445	38.0%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Connecticut percentile	Rating
2021	54.6	148 of 371	60.1%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Connecticut percentile	Rating
2023	53.0	147 of 262	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	26.5	262 of 327	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)88th percentile+21 vs school

Special Education (2021)60th percentile+20 vs school

White (2023)44th percentile-14 vs school

Male (2021)38th percentile~ school

By subject vs Connecticut (2025-2026) ?

Mathematics51%~ state avg

English Language Arts50%~ state avg

4.5

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Friday, February 22, 2019

Both of my children have attended Buckley. They have had some of the most outstanding educators! These teachers are dedicated to their students and it shows in all that they do. I feel so fortunate to have had my kids go through Buckley school. Close Quote

by a parent
Thursday, July 14, 2011

It's a nice school. Close Quote

Schools Near Buckley School

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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)		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	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
Buckley School	Public	K-4	250 Vernon Street	Manchester	06042	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	No	No	No	(860) 647-3302	284	28	10.2	52.5%	99 (34.9%)	65 (22.9%)	72 (25.4%)	28 (9.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (7.0%)	47.2	264^th of 492 public elementary schools	46.3%		72.9	159^th of 493 public elementary schools	67.7%	105			46.6	53.1					53.4	48.4					$24,845
Bowers School	Public	K-4	141 Princeton Street	Manchester	06042	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	No	No	Yes	(860) 647-3313	376	32	11.9	67.0%	84 (22.3%)	78 (20.7%)	176 (46.8%)	16 (4.3%)	3 (0.8%)	2 (0.5%)	17 (4.5%)	19.2	376^th of 492 public elementary schools	23.6%		17.3	386^th of 493 public elementary schools	21.7%	10			23.2	32.9					30.4	40.5					$24,280
Highland Park School	Public	K-4	397 Porter St.	Manchester	06040	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	No	No	No	(860) 647-3430	300	29	10.3	54.3%	99 (33.0%)	64 (21.3%)	101 (33.7%)	21 (7.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (4.7%)	62.4	210^th of 492 public elementary schools	57.3%		50.4	251^st of 493 public elementary schools	49.1%	41			55.1	58.1					59.4	64.5					$23,647
Keeney School	Public	K-4	65 North School St.	Manchester	06042	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	No	No	No	(860) 647-3354	366	30	12.1	53.3%	142 (38.8%)	87 (23.8%)	85 (23.2%)	27 (7.4%)	4 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.7%)	19.6	373^rd of 492 public elementary schools	24.2%		23.2	351^st of 493 public elementary schools	28.8%	22			28.6	38.7					32.0	32.8					$22,644
Lake Street School	Public	K-5	201 Lake St.	Vernon	06066	Capitol Planning Region	Vernon School District	No	No	No	No	(860) 870-6085	235	22	10.5	42.1%	139 (59.1%)	9 (3.8%)	42 (17.9%)	22 (9.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (9.8%)	61.3	218^th of 492 public elementary schools	55.7%		66.3	193^rd of 493 public elementary schools	60.9%	25	68.2		2425.0	59.5	63.6				46.2	48.6	63.6				$22,246
Waddell School	Public	K-4	163 Broad Street	Manchester	06042	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	No	No	Yes	(860) 647-3392	476	40	11.8	63.4%	73 (15.3%)	114 (23.9%)	165 (34.7%)	92 (19.3%)	5 (1.1%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (5.5%)	34.1	320^th of 492 public elementary schools	35.0%		25.6	341^st of 493 public elementary schools	30.8%	21			31.0	42.0					53.5	43.9					$22,521
Manchester Preschool Center at Martin	Public	PK-K	140 Dartmouth Rd	Manchester	06040	Capitol Planning Region	Manchester School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(860) 647-3367	153	11	13.7	67.3%	23 (15.0%)	37 (24.2%)	55 (35.9%)	28 (18.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (6.5%)								(n/a)															$18,610
Bolton Center School	Public	PK, KG-8	108 Notch Rd.	Bolton	06043	Capitol Planning Region	Bolton School District	No	No	No	Yes	(860) 643-2411	473	44	10.8	21.8%	357 (75.5%)	25 (5.3%)	54 (11.4%)	6 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (6.6%)	80.5	104^th of 492 public elementary schools	78.9%		72.2	162^nd of 493 public elementary schools	67.1%	58	69.2	809.0	72.4	70.8	73.1	68.9	2558.0	2585.0	2499.0	68.8	2568.0	2579.0	47.1	60.0	$21,281
Odyssey Community School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	579 Middle Tpke West	Manchester	06040	Capitol Planning Region	Odyssey Community School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(860) 645-1234	410	33	12.4	40.5%	97 (23.7%)	91 (22.2%)	86 (21.0%)	105 (25.6%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (6.8%)	56.7	232^nd of 492 public elementary schools	52.8%		58.1	229^th of 493 public elementary schools	53.5%	3	496.0	805.0	42.9	65.8	46.2	2534.0	52.5	2581.0	2438.0	73.7	2510.0	2521.0	52.5	56.4	$14,822
Orchard Hill School	Public	K-5	380 Foster St.	South Windsor	06074	Capitol Planning Region	South Windsor School District	No	No	No	No	(860) 648-5015	623	48	13.0	19.7%	260 (41.7%)	33 (5.3%)	63 (10.1%)	236 (37.9%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (4.5%)	77.6	126^th of 492 public elementary schools	74.4%		85.8	62^nd of 493 public elementary schools	87.4%	64	69.7		58.7	77.8	70.7				68.6	84.6	56.6				$17,198

Frequently Asked Questions about Buckley School

What schools do graduates of Buckley School attend?

Students who attend Buckley School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Illing Middle School
High : Manchester High School

What is the racial makeup of Buckley School?

Students at Buckley School are 35% White, 25% Hispanic, 23% African American, 10% Asian, 7% Two or more races.

How many students attend Buckley School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 284 students attended Buckley School.

Is Buckley School a good school?

Buckley School ranks 264^th of 492 Connecticut elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Buckley School in?

Manchester School District

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Latest Connecticut data All new data »

2024–25 through 2025–26 attendance data & graduation ratesAug 31, 2026

2025–26 NGSS, SAT & SBAC test scoresAug 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.