Summary:
Zip code 19952, encompassing the Harrington, DE area, is served by two public schools within the Lake Forest School District, a 4-star rated district ranked 11th out of 34 in Delaware, and covers grades K-3 and 6-8, meaning students in other grade bands must travel outside the immediate area.
For parents, the standout institution is Chipman (W.T.) Middle School, a large school with 905 students that has shown a positive three-year upward trend in its state ranking (from the 37th to 58th percentile). Its clear strength is Social Studies, where 7th graders achieve a 69.45% proficiency rate—nearly 10 points above the state average—and 8th graders also exceed state benchmarks. However, its 8th-grade Science proficiency is a critical weakness at just 14.78%, the lowest across all subjects. In contrast, Lake Forest South Elementary School excels in early Mathematics, with 45.71% of 3rd graders proficient (3 points above the state), while its ELA scores lag slightly behind. The elementary school also benefits from a much lower student-teacher ratio (14.5 vs. 18.8) and higher per-student spending ($13,063 vs. $10,942), which appears to support its math success.
Chronic absenteeism is a district-wide concern, with both schools exceeding the state average (18.3% at the elementary and 21.3% at the middle school). Despite this, there is positive momentum: both schools improved significantly in Math year-over-year (elementary +8.21 points; middle school +5.55 to +6.1 points across grades), and middle school Social Studies scores jumped by nearly 12 points. The elementary school also showed gains in ELA (+5.41 points). While the middle school's larger class sizes haven't hindered its social studies performance, the science gap and absenteeism rates are areas for parents to watch, especially as students transition to high school.
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