Summary
Lincoln Middle School serves approximately 684 students in grades 6–8 in Meriden, CT, and is part of the Meriden School District. The school has a high-poverty student body, with 78.5% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a factor that provides important context when comparing test scores with nearby suburban districts. Chronic absenteeism has improved meaningfully, dropping from 29.3% in 2021–2022 to 18.3% in 2025–2026, though roughly one in six students still misses enough school to be considered chronically absent.
Academically, Lincoln Middle School shows a mixed profile. Mathematics is a relative strength, particularly in 6th grade, where 43.3% of students were proficient in 2025–2026, essentially matching the state average of 44.4%. English language arts trails at every grade level, with 7th grade proficiency at 39.8% compared with the state's 52.2%. Science is also a concern, with only 36% of 8th graders proficient on the NGSS assessment versus the state's 50.9%. Within Meriden, Lincoln sits in the middle: it outperforms Washington Middle School across nearly every measure but trails Edison Middle School, which posted notably higher scores in ELA, science, and attendance.
Despite the overall 2-star rating, Lincoln shows hidden strengths. Hispanic students, low-income students, and White students all score in the 55th–58th percentile among their statewide peer groups, earning 3-star ratings. Trend data also show real momentum—6th grade math proficiency more than doubled from 21.5% in 2023–2024 to 43.3% in 2025–2026. Compared with Michael F. Wallace Middle School in Waterbury, which has similarly high poverty, Lincoln posts substantially higher math scores. However, resource differences remain notable: Lincoln's student-teacher ratio of 15.0 is the highest among nearby middle schools, and per-student spending is lower than most comparison schools. Lincoln's improving trajectory suggests that continued focus on literacy, attendance, and equitable resources could help close the gap with schools like Tyrrell Middle School and Dodd Middle School, which report much lower chronic absenteeism.
Thank you for your feedback!