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Best Public Schools in Zip Code 02451

At a glance

Schools

832

Students

Top rankedDouglas MacArthur Elementary School403^rd of 906 Massachusetts elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Thomas R Plympton Elementary School up 111 spots statewide this year

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Summary:

The 02451 zip code area of Waltham, Massachusetts is home to two elementary schools: Douglas MacArthur Elementary School and Thomas R Plympton Elementary School. Based on the available data, Douglas MacArthur appears to be the stronger performing school, with higher proficiency rates on state assessments and a higher statewide ranking compared to both the Waltham district and state averages.

Douglas MacArthur Elementary School has notably higher proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science compared to Thomas R Plympton. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 45.99% of Douglas MacArthur students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 36.65% at Thomas R Plympton. In Math, the figures were 46.61% and 36.25% respectively. Douglas MacArthur also has a higher statewide ranking, currently at 403 out of 906 Massachusetts elementary schools, while Thomas R Plympton is ranked 567th.

Despite Thomas R Plympton spending slightly more per student ($23,136) compared to Douglas MacArthur ($21,642), this higher spending does not seem to translate to better academic outcomes. Both schools have relatively low student-teacher ratios, with Douglas MacArthur at 11.3 and Thomas R Plympton at 10.3 for the 2023-2024 school year. Understanding the specific factors driving the performance differences between the two schools, such as curriculum, teaching quality, or student demographics, could provide valuable insights to help improve outcomes at the lower-performing Thomas R Plympton Elementary School.

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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 (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MCAS Next Generation English Language Arts (2025)				MCAS Next Generation Mathematics (2025)				MCAS Next Generation Science (2025)		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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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 All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 3rd Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 4th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Mathematics All Grades	MCAS Next Generation Science 5th Grade	MCAS Next Generation Science All Grades	Total
Douglas MacArthur Elementary School	Public	K-5	494 Lincoln Street	Waltham	02451	Middlesex County	Waltham	No	No	No	No	(781) 314-5721	475	41	11.4		271 (57.1%)	35 (7.4%)	106 (22.3%)	36 (7.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	23 (4.8%)	55.3	403^rd of 906 public elementary schools	55.5%		51	462^nd of 916 public elementary schools	49.6%	59	42.5	48.3	47.5	46.0	43.7	44.9	53.3	46.6	35.0	35.0	$23,980
Thomas R Plympton Elementary School	Public	K-5	20 Farnsworth Street	Waltham	02451	Middlesex County	Waltham	No	No	No	Yes	(781) 314-5760	357	35	10.1		139 (38.9%)	48 (13.4%)	136 (38.1%)	15 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.3%)	38.3	567^th of 906 public elementary schools	37.4%		25.9	678^th of 916 public elementary schools	26.0%	111	50.0	27.3	31.8	36.7	48.2	40.9	22.6	36.3	29.0	29.0	$25,849

Cities Near Zip Code 02451

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Waltham	0.72 mi	11	259^th
Lexington	2.72 mi	11	9^th
Weston	3.04 mi	5	5^th
Lincoln	3.17 mi	1	27^th
West Newton	3.31 mi	2	56^th

See the top MA Massachusetts cities

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.