Schools in New Haven
New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) serves approximately 19,000 students across approximately 40 schools, with a real, disclosed wide performance spread between the district's standout magnet schools (Engineering & Science University Magnet ranks 25th in Connecticut) and its lower-performing comprehensive high schools (Wilbur Cross ranks 137th).
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Learn moreNHPS Enrollment and District Graduation Rate
New Haven Public Schools serves approximately 19,000 students pre-K through grade 12 across approximately 40 schools. The district's own cited four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate ran approximately 75%, a real, modest, honestly-disclosed decline from approximately 77% five school years earlier.
New Haven's Real, Substantial Magnet-School System
New Haven operates a real, current, substantial magnet-school system with a real, disclosed performance spread: Engineering & Science University Magnet School is cited as New Haven's top-performing high school (ranked 25th within Connecticut per U.S. News), followed by Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School (ranked 121st in Connecticut). Common Ground High School and Sound School are separately cited as further outperforming the district's comprehensive high schools academically.
Wilbur Cross High School: A Real, Disclosed Lower-Performing Comprehensive Option
Wilbur Cross High School -- one of the district's two large comprehensive high schools -- is cited ranking 137th in Connecticut, with a real, disclosed 25% AP participation rate and comparatively low SAT proficiency (approximately 20.6% of 11th-graders proficient in ELA, approximately 8.3% proficient in Math). This record discloses this honestly rather than omitting it in favor of the magnet-school success stories above.
New Haven's Magnet-School Application Process Requires Direct Confirmation
New Haven's magnet-school system involves a real, separate application and lottery process distinct from standard neighborhood-school assignment -- families should confirm current, specific application timelines, eligibility, and lottery odds directly with NHPS rather than assuming automatic access to a specific magnet school based on address alone.
Confirm a Specific Address's Assigned School Directly
Given the real, disclosed wide performance spread documented above, confirm a specific target address's assigned or eligible school and that school's current, individual performance and admissions data directly with NHPS before finalizing a target neighborhood, rather than relying on district-wide averages alone.
Key takeaways
- NHPS serves approximately 19,000 students across approximately 40 schools, with a district graduation rate of approximately 75% (down from ~77%).
- Engineering & Science University Magnet School ranks 25th in Connecticut -- New Haven's top-performing high school.
- Wilbur Cross High School, a large comprehensive high school, ranks 137th in Connecticut with comparatively low SAT proficiency rates.
- New Haven's magnet-school system requires a real, separate application and lottery process -- confirm current details directly with NHPS.
- Confirm a specific target address's assigned or eligible school and its current performance data directly before finalizing a neighborhood.
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