Summary:
ZIP code 06708 in Waterbury, CT contains two middle schools—West Side Middle School and ACES Chase Academy—serving grades 6–8 and 6–10 respectively, with a combined enrollment of over 1,400 students and starkly different academic outcomes despite their close proximity on Chase Parkway.
For parents, the clearest takeaway is that ACES Chase Academy outperforms West Side Middle School in nearly every academic category. ACES Chase Academy ranks in the 43rd percentile statewide (2025-26) and shows much stronger test scores: average ELA proficiency is 42.5% versus West Side’s 31.1%, and average math proficiency is 31.2% versus just 12.1%. The widest gap appears in 8th grade science, where 57.4% of ACES students are proficient compared to only 18.5% at West Side. ACES also has a much lower chronic absenteeism rate (11.5% vs. 26.5%) and a lower share of economically disadvantaged students (41.73% free/reduced lunch vs. 82.19% at West Side). West Side, part of the Waterbury School District, is a large, high-poverty school with serious challenges—especially in math, where proficiency drops to 5.9% by 8th grade, far below the state average of 41.9%.
Meanwhile, ACES Chase Academy belongs to the Area Cooperative Educational Services district, which operates differently from traditional public schools and spends about $25,029 per student compared to West Side’s $17,195. Although its district is also low-ranked statewide, ACES Chase Academy stands out as a mid-pack school within Connecticut, beating its own district’s averages by wide margins. Both schools are in the same ZIP code, but the differences in governance, funding, attendance strategies, and school model appear to make a meaningful academic difference. For parents, this suggests that looking beyond district rankings to individual school performance and programs is essential when evaluating options in this area.
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