Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 06320

Zip code 06320 in New London, Connecticut, is home to three middle schools that collectively serve 804 students in grades 4 through 8: Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School and the Science and Technology Magnet Pathway for Middle Grades, both part of the New London School District, and the Interdistrict School For Arts And Communication (ISAAC), which operates under the Interdistrict School for Arts and Community District.

Interdistrict School For Arts And Communication is the clear academic standout. It ranks in the 48th percentile statewide with 2 stars, and its English language arts proficiency is at or above state averages in every grade. It also has the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (14.6%) and the lowest poverty rate (68.29% free/reduced lunch). At the opposite end, Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School is the most challenged school in the group: a 6th-percentile ranking, 0 stars, 94.17% free/reduced lunch eligibility, 29% chronic absenteeism, and proficiency rates in the single digits or low teens in most subjects. The Science and Technology Magnet Pathway for Middle Grades sits in the middle, with an 18th-percentile ranking, 1 star, and meaningfully better results than Bennie Dover in reading (32.8% vs. 9.6% in 6th grade ELA), though it still trails state averages by roughly 18 to 29 percentage points.

A consistent pattern emerges: the school with the lowest poverty and absenteeism (ISAAC) posts the highest achievement, while the school with the highest poverty and absenteeism (Bennie Dover) posts the lowest. Notably, Bennie Dover spends $16,805 per student — about $3,500 more than ISAAC — and has the smallest classes (7.2:1), yet achieves far less, showing that extra resources alone don't erase the impacts of concentrated disadvantage. One concerning trend at ISAAC: math proficiency starts above the state average in 6th grade (48.8% vs. 44.4%) but falls to 30% by 8th grade, indicating that math growth is not being sustained in the later grades. Finally, Bennie Dover and the Science/Tech Magnet share the same Waller Street campus in the New London School District, yet the magnet school serves a somewhat different population with better attendance and stronger outcomes.