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John J Shaughnessy

Q: Is John J Shaughnessy a good school?

John J Shaughnessy ranks 649 th of 899 Massachusetts elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-4

649^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 899 Massachusetts Elementary Schools

Better than 28% of Massachusetts elementary schools

Summary

John J Shaughnessy is a PK–4 elementary school at 1158 Gorham Street in Lowell, MA, enrolling 485 students as part of the Lowell School District, which ranks 273rd of 351 Massachusetts districts.

In 2025–26 the school ranked 649th of 899 Massachusetts schools (28th percentile, 1 star). Its rank history shows a long decline from the 48th percentile in 2016–17 to the 14th percentile in 2022–23, then a modest rebound to 28th. On MCAS, all-grade ELA proficiency is 25.6%, below the district's 27.3% and the state's 40.0%, while math is 33.7% — slightly above the district's 32.4% but below the state's 41.1%. Fourth grade is the clearest weakness: 4th-grade ELA (21.6%) and math (29.6%) are the lowest among nearby comparison schools and trail both district and state averages. Third grade is steadier, with ELA at 30.3% and math at 38.5%, both above district averages, suggesting the concern is concentrated in the upper elementary grade.

Subgroup results are more encouraging. English Language Learner Students ranked in the 83rd percentile (4 stars) in 2025–26, following the 92nd percentile (5 stars) a year earlier. Low Socio Economic Status Students reached the 56th percentile (3 stars), up from 39th and 26th in the prior two years, and Special Education Students rose from the 0th percentile in 2023–24 to 36th. The student-teacher ratio is 13.4 — the highest among nearby schools. Locally, Charles W Morey (67th percentile, 3 stars) and Dr Gertrude Bailey (56th, 3 stars) post much higher proficiency, and Abraham Lincoln and Rogers STEM Academy rank below Shaughnessy — placing it in the lower-middle of its local group, with a standout ELL program.

485

Students ?

13.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$22,555

Per pupil spending ?

77%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1158 Gorham Street
Lowell, MA 01852

(978) 937-7657

District: Lowell

Students who attend John J Shaughnessy usually attend:

Middle:	B.F. Butler Middle School
	Henry J Robinson Middle
	James Sullivan Middle School
	Laura Lee Therapeutic Day School
High:	Leblanc Therapeutic Day School
	Lowell High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

47.2%

Asian:

22.3%

White:

19.6%

See top rated Massachusetts elementary schools

Compare John J Shaughnessy to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 14th percentile in 2023 → 28th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 28th (2026) from a 14th-percentile low (2023)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Massachusetts average (30% vs 41% meeting standards)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!English Language Arts scores 14 pts below the Massachusetts average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school30%

District avg30%

Massachusetts avg41%

649^th of 899

Massachusetts public elementary schools ?

Bottom 28%▼ down 5 pts since 2016

From bottom 33% (2016) to bottom 28% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Massachusetts Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

9^th of 15Elementary Schools in the Lowell

273^rd of 351Lowell among Massachusetts districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	26.8	649 of 899	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	19.7	742 of 906	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.1	775 of 916	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.8	800 of 928	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.0	684 of 932	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.0	746 of 936	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.0	607 of 942	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	38.4	610 of 934	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2017	49.3	491 of 938	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	36.8	629 of 932	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2015	20.0	764 of 914	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	23.2	756 of 926	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	23.7	748 of 928	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	9.1	863 of 930	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	15.6	796 of 924	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	21.1	767 of 920	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	8.5	850 of 909	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	13.7	806 of 908	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	11.3	830 of 911	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	7.6	864 of 911	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	8.0	835 of 887	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	10.8	794 of 882	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	18.2	739 of 884	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	16.0	133 of 149	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	22.8	118 of 142	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	3.8	149 of 152	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	2.5	141 of 145	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.1	130 of 143	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.5	128 of 141	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.5	136 of 155	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.7	139 of 154	9.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2022	30.3	466 of 672	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	39.9	375 of 665	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	23.8	550 of 656	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	64.9	49 of 291	83.2%	★★★★☆
2025	77.0	22 of 281	92.2%	★★★★★
2024	60.4	55 of 282	80.5%	★★★★☆
2023	52.7	70 of 264	73.5%	★★★★☆
2022	47.0	101 of 267	62.2%	★★★☆☆
2021	78.5	16 of 240	93.3%	★★★★★
2019	89.2	14 of 258	94.6%	★★★★★
2018	87.6	20 of 244	91.8%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	38.2	529 of 869	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	32.4	601 of 869	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	18.2	745 of 886	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.0	789 of 887	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.0	663 of 901	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.4	699 of 898	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	44.7	533 of 902	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	38.5	587 of 893	34.3%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	43.4	245 of 475	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	24.3	390 of 458	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.2	321 of 446	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	38.1	263 of 420	37.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	46.0	180 of 401	55.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	39.8	204 of 379	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	44.6	221 of 398	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.5	193 of 379	49.1%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	52.4	328 of 742	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	39.8	449 of 736	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.2	565 of 760	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	34.4	538 of 757	28.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	41.4	466 of 772	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.3	525 of 705	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	65.2	189 of 700	73.0%	★★★★☆
2018	60.7	215 of 685	68.6%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	20.5	726 of 879	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.8	800 of 884	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	746 of 891	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.4	718 of 896	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.0	657 of 908	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.9	699 of 904	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.0	612 of 907	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.7	586 of 898	34.7%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	35.7	454 of 709	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2025	26.5	555 of 717	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.2	731 of 731	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.3	603 of 703	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	41.2	542 of 905	40.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	31.9	640 of 894	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	60.4	291 of 896	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.1	319 of 886	64.0%	★★★☆☆

Tested In Person

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2021	15.9	783 of 925	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Tested Remotely

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2021	34.3	241 of 399	39.6%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Massachusetts percentile	Rating
2026	18.3	639 of 734	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	5.2	719 of 737	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.5	754 of 762	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	19.0	673 of 764	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.2	710 of 765	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	25.0	648 of 780	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.9	602 of 772	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

English Language Learner (2026)83rd percentile+55 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)56th percentile+28 vs school

Hispanic (2026)48th percentile+21 vs school

Tested Remotely (2021)40th percentile+19 vs school

Female (2026)39th percentile+11 vs school

Special Education (2026)36th percentile+8 vs school

Disabled (2022)31st percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)17th percentile-10 vs school

Tested In Person (2021)15th percentile-5 vs school

White (2026)13th percentile-15 vs school

Asian (2026)11th percentile-17 vs school

By subject vs Massachusetts (2025-2026) ?

Mathematics34%-7 vs state

English Language Arts26%-14 vs state

1.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, April 24, 2019

Horrible school. Horrible District. Worse if your child is of mixed race and special needs. Take your child somewhere else if you can. They purposely marked my daughter down as "white" just to up their percentage on these websites and refused to changed it wen you ask. You can walk around that school and see that school is not over 25 white. The only thing that is over 25 is the staff. They completely lake so much diversity in the district that the school district really needs to have a meeting to hire more diversity! They are changing paperwork on children's files and marking them down as "white" when they are not. My daughter is half white and half African American. The district knows and refuses to change it. The school is complete racist. They skip over Black History Month but all her teacher talked about was her Irish heritage. Her teacher even told the class that slaves where immigrants and had the choice to come here! On top of all that my daughter has a very serious mental health condition. They teachers and rest of the staff do not take it seriously. When she is having a mental breakdown instead of going to the approved plan they belittle her or treat her like she is brat and tell her thing like "no one thinks your special" , "stop pouting". She already threatening to kill herself once in class over all of this and the staff and school officials and district don't care. Close Quote

Schools Near John J Shaughnessy

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts (2026)							MCAS Next Generation Mathematics (2026)							MCAS Next Generation Science (2026)			MCAS Next Generation Civics (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2015)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 4th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 6th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 7th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 3rd Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 4th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 6th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 7th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Science 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science 8th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Civics 8th Grade	Total
John J Shaughnessy	Public	PK, KG-4	1158 Gorham Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7657	485	36	13.4	77.0%	95 (19.6%)	26 (5.4%)	229 (47.2%)	108 (22.3%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	25 (5.2%)	26.8	649^th of 899 public elementary schools	27.8%		19.7	742^nd of 906 public elementary schools	18.1%	93	30.3	21.6					25.6	38.5	29.6					33.7					$22,555
Abraham Lincoln	Public	PK, KG-4	300 Chelmsford Street	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-2846	492	41	12.0	85.2%	70 (14.2%)	29 (5.9%)	186 (37.8%)	182 (37.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	24 (4.9%)	17.2	759^th of 899 public elementary schools	15.6%		24.6	682^nd of 906 public elementary schools	24.7%	77	11.1	27.7					19.5	13.6	31.3					22.6					$22,210
Pyne Arts	Public	PK, KG-8	145 Boylston Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7639	462	39	11.8	62.5%	156 (33.8%)	24 (5.2%)	185 (40.0%)	75 (16.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.8%)	42	519^th of 899 public elementary schools	42.3%		49.6	458^th of 906 public elementary schools	49.4%	61	50.0	41.5	24.0	40.0	37.7	32.7	37.1	40.0	47.6	33.3	30.0	18.5	24.5	31.5	27.5	16.3	22.0	28.6	$23,326
Moody Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	158 Rogers Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7673	248	22	11.2	87.9%	58 (23.4%)	15 (6.0%)	144 (58.1%)	22 (8.9%)	1 (0.4%)	2 (0.8%)	6 (2.4%)	34.9	581^st of 899 public elementary schools	35.4%		27.9	653^rd of 906 public elementary schools	27.9%	72	19.4	30.6					25.0	22.2	61.1					41.7					$24,473
Rogers STEM Academy	Public	K-8	43 Highland Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 674-4331	892	68	13.1	86.3%	147 (16.5%)	77 (8.6%)	464 (52.0%)	167 (18.7%)	5 (0.6%)	3 (0.3%)	29 (3.3%)	18.3	744^th of 899 public elementary schools	17.2%		24	687^th of 906 public elementary schools	24.2%	57	20.8	23.1	19.1	17.0	24.8	19.4	20.7	22.1	33.0	16.5	31.0	16.2	32.7	25.0	19.3	19.4	19.3	27.1	$20,383
Washington	Public	PK, KG-4	795 Wilder Street	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7635	252	23	10.9	61.6%	36 (14.3%)	23 (9.1%)	69 (27.4%)	106 (42.1%)	2 (0.8%)	1 (0.4%)	15 (6.0%)	39.1	547^th of 899 public elementary schools	39.2%		39.5	551^st of 906 public elementary schools	39.2%	4	33.3	35.6					34.6	41.7	35.6					38.3					$24,836
Lowell Community Charter Public School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	206 Jackson Street	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell Community Charter Public (District)	Yes	No	No	Yes	(978) 323-0800	816	68	12.0	83.7%	59 (7.2%)	198 (24.3%)	385 (47.2%)	137 (16.8%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (4.3%)	48.4	467^th of 899 public elementary schools	48.1%		40.1	547^th of 906 public elementary schools	39.6%	80	34.8	36.5	44.4	53.0	37.1	44.7	41.7	27.0	40.7	46.9	48.2	24.3	36.8	37.5	32.1	27.6	29.9	35.5	$24,286
Charles W Morey	Public	PK, KG-4	130 Pine Street	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7662	497	40	12.4	76.2%	47 (9.5%)	37 (7.4%)	112 (22.5%)	274 (55.1%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (5.0%)	66.3	301^st of 899 public elementary schools	66.5%		39.2	556^th of 906 public elementary schools	38.6%	255	57.0	32.1					44.4	63.8	53.1					58.4					$23,045
Dr Gertrude Bailey	Public	PK, KG-4	175 Campbell Drive	Lowell	01851	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7644	454	36	12.6	62.5%	97 (21.4%)	37 (8.1%)	139 (30.6%)	155 (34.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.7%)	55.9	395^th of 899 public elementary schools	56.1%		53.1	423^rd of 906 public elementary schools	53.3%	28	41.6	38.8					40.1	50.0	50.6					50.3					$23,461
Peter W Reilly	Public	PK, KG-4	115 Douglas Road	Lowell	01852	Middlesex County	Lowell	No	No	No	Yes	(978) 937-7652	471	37	12.7	63.8%	183 (38.9%)	26 (5.5%)	176 (37.4%)	51 (10.8%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (7.0%)	34.9	580^th of 899 public elementary schools	35.5%		43.1	524^th of 906 public elementary schools	42.2%	56	36.7	31.5					33.9	38.5	31.5					34.7					$22,800

Frequently Asked Questions about John J Shaughnessy

What schools do graduates of John J Shaughnessy attend?

Students who attend John J Shaughnessy usually go on to attend:

Middle : B.F. Butler Middle School
Middle : Henry J Robinson Middle
Middle : James Sullivan Middle School
Middle : Laura Lee Therapeutic Day School
High : Leblanc Therapeutic Day School
High : Lowell High

What district is John J Shaughnessy in?

Lowell

What is the racial makeup of John J Shaughnessy?

Students at John J Shaughnessy are 47% Hispanic, 22% Asian, 20% White, 5% African American, 5% Two or more races.

Is John J Shaughnessy a good school?

John J Shaughnessy ranks 649^th of 899 Massachusetts elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

How many students attend John J Shaughnessy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 485 students attended John J Shaughnessy.

Rate John J Shaughnessy!

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Latest Massachusetts data All new data »

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesMar 5, 2026

2024–25 MCAS Next Generation test scoresSep 29, 2025

2023–24 school spending dataMay 8, 2025

2023–24 dropout rates & graduation ratesMay 1, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.