Kenny Elementary School

Kenny Elementary School is a PK–6 school at 19 Oakton Avenue in Dorchester (02122), part of Boston Public Schools, serving 329 students with a 10.2-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio. It is improving sharply: in 2025-26 the school reached the 32nd percentile and a 2-star rating, its strongest showing in the ten years shown, with All-Grades proficiency at 32.08% in ELA, 27.85% in math, and 34.09% in science. That is two straight years of major gains and the first time in this window it earned 2 stars.

Among nearby Boston schools, the school now beats most same-district neighbors by about +9.5 points in ELA, +5.8 in math, and +9.9 in science. Only Murphy K-8 School ranks higher overall (488 vs. 610), but Murphy is declining while the school is climbing, and the school already tops Murphy in science (34.09 vs. 31.40). Science is the clearest relative strength—highest among same-district peers and +9.15 over the Boston average—but it comes from a single 5th-grade cohort, so it has swung widely and should be read cautiously. Math is the weaker subject, especially in 6th grade, where the school’s 6.25% is far below its strong 3rd-grade results (42.50% math, 50.00% ELA). English Language Learners and low-income students have improved, while special education students remain at the 4th percentile.

The school spends $26,635 per pupil, which is mid-to-low among its Boston peers, and its class size is relatively favorable. Yet the sharpest contrast is across the district line: Montclair, 1.54 miles away in Quincy, spends $15,045 per student—about 56% of the school’s per-pupil figure—and posts much higher results (58.25% math, 48.45% ELA, 64.06% science). This suggests money and class size alone do not determine outcomes. For parents, the school’s direction is positive: it is outperforming the district in ELA and science, and it has momentum. The key things to watch are the volatile science results, the large 3rd-to-6th-grade math/ELA decline, and persistently low special education performance.