Best High Schools in Walpole, MA

Walpole, Massachusetts is home to two high schools serving grades 9–12 — Walpole High, with 917 students in the Walpole district, and Norfolk County Agricultural, with 597 students in the Norfolk County Agricultural district — so families here are choosing between a larger comprehensive high school and a smaller agricultural-focused one.

Walpole High is the stronger overall academic performer, particularly in math and science. Its district rank is 42 of 351 (88th percentile, 4 stars), and its school rank for 2025–2026 is 89 of 353 (75th percentile, 4 stars), with a steady 4-star history. It beat the state average in every reported MCAS subject in both years. Math proficiency was 62.01% in 2025–2026 versus the state's 43.73%, and 66.34% versus 44.60% the year before. Its high point was 70.10% proficient in 2024–2025 Science, against a state average of 45.89%. ELA is closer: 50.43% versus Norfolk County Agricultural's 48.37% in 2025–2026, a reversal from 2024–2025 when the agricultural school led, 60.78% to 58.42%. Both schools stayed above the state ELA average in both years.

Norfolk County Agricultural stands out on graduation and resources: a 98.6% graduation rate versus 96.6%, a lower student-teacher ratio (9.8 versus 11.2), and $23,659 per-student spending versus $16,705 (2020–2021). Its rank has improved steadily, from 175 of 348 to 149 of 353, though it remains a 3-star school. Its clear weakness is math, below the state in both years (26.49% versus 43.73%, and 32.47% versus 44.60%). Note that both schools saw proficiency decline across the core subjects from 2024–2025 to 2025–2026. Free/reduced-lunch data is blank for both, so economic context is unknown. Also, the end-of-course science exams differ — Physics at Walpole High, Biology at Norfolk County Agricultural — so those scores are not directly comparable.