Best Public Schools in Canaan, ME

Summary:

The city of Canaan, Maine is home to a single standout public elementary school, Canaan Elementary School, which serves students in grades PK-5. Despite facing some socioeconomic challenges, this school has consistently ranked in the top 30% of Maine elementary schools over the past 3 years, with a high ranking of 58th out of 289 schools in the 2024-2025 school year.

Canaan Elementary School's academic performance is exceptional, with test scores significantly above the regional and state averages in both English Language Arts and Mathematics. In 2024-2025, 70.77% of students were proficient or better in ELA compared to 65.05% for the district and 63.84% for the state. In Math, Canaan Elementary had 69.23% proficiency compared to 45.38% for the district and 49.38% for the state. This strong academic performance is likely due in part to the school's low student-teacher ratio of 9:1.

While Canaan Elementary School's academic achievements are impressive, the school faces some challenges, including a high rate of free and reduced lunch recipients (67.48%) and a relatively high chronic absenteeism rate (23.4%). Additionally, the school's district, Regional School Unit 54/Maine School Admin District 54, is ranked 103 out of 176 districts in Maine and rated 2 out of 5 stars. Despite these challenges, Canaan Elementary School remains a standout institution in the region, providing a high-quality education to its students.

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MEA English Language Arts (2025)	MEA Mathematics (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	MEA English Language Arts All Grades	MEA Mathematics All Grades	Total
Canaan Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	178 Main Street	Canaan	04924	Somerset County	Regional School Unit 54/Maine School Admin District 54	No	No	No	Yes	(207) 474-3901	160	18	8.8	71.3%	146 (91.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.3%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (6.9%)	79.9	58^th of 289 public elementary schools	79.9%		69.8	93^rd of 288 public elementary schools	67.7%	35	70.8	69.2	$31,209

Cities Near Canaan

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Hinckley	7.39 mi	1	253^rd
Skowhegan	7.62 mi	8	197^th
Pittsfield	8.22 mi	3	172^nd
Clinton	8.41 mi	1	243^rd
Hartland	10.59 mi	1	154^th

See the top ME Maine cities

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