Summary
Thomas Ditson is a K–4 elementary school with 542 students in Billerica, Massachusetts, a suburban town in the Greater Boston area, and one of several elementary schools in the Billerica district. In 2025–2026 it ranked 503rd of 899 Massachusetts elementary schools — the 44th percentile, 2 stars — below the Billerica district's own 50th-percentile, 175th-of-351 standing. The slide has been steady: the 69th percentile in 2021–2022, 65th in 2022–2023, 59th in 2023–2024, 52nd in 2024–2025, and 44th in 2025–2026.
Academically, the school's profile is split. All-grades English Language Arts proficiency was 34.75% in 2025–2026, below the district (41.81%) and the state (40.03%), while math was 43.64%, above the district (41.69%) and the state (41.11%). The clearest pressure point is 4th-grade ELA at 30.25%, versus 32.44% district and 37.43% state; 3rd grade sits closer to norms at 39.32% ELA and 41.88% math. ELA peaked at 47.73% in 2022–2023 and has since fallen to 34.75%. Math remains a relative strength, but it dropped from 53.74% in 2024–2025 to 43.64% in 2025–2026.
Within Billerica, Thomas Ditson is roughly comparable to Parker but far behind John F Kennedy, whose all-grades ELA (45.90%) and math (57.72%) each run more than 11 points higher, and whose 4th-grade ELA is 49.30% versus Ditson's 30.25%. Ditson also trails tested elementary schools in neighboring Bedford, Wilmington, and Burlington, which generally score in the 47%–68% range in ELA. Context worth noting: Ditson has the highest student-teacher ratio (16.9) among the comparison schools, and per-pupil spending of $18,214 (2020–2021) is among the lowest locally — context, not proof of cause. Subgroup rankings are uneven: female students at the 54th percentile, male students at the 35th, and low-income students down from the 71st percentile in 2024–2025 to the 38th in 2025–2026.
Thank you for your feedback!