King/robinson Magnet School, New Haven CT

Original Research by School Decision on King/robinson Magnet School

King/Robinson Magnet School sits in New Haven as a pre-K through eighth-grade school serving a densely residential neighborhood. The school's enrollment is small to mid-sized for the grade band, with roughly equal distribution across early and middle grades. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Black, with meaningful representation of Hispanic and Asian students.

The school's academic performance presents a straightforward challenge. In English language arts, the school-wide proficiency rate sits below the state average. In math, proficiency is lower still, with particularly steep drops in the sixth through eighth grades where proficiency rates fall into the low single digits. Science proficiency, tested in grades five and eight, is similarly low. The tested grades show students taking the Smarter Balanced Assessment and NGSS assessments at high participation rates, and scale scores suggest students are engaged with the material, yet most do not meet state proficiency standards. A parent may want to discuss with the school what interventions or supports are in place to help students master grade-level content.

The performance data appears only for this school year, so trend comparison is not yet available from the state. Among the county's districts, King/Robinson's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile. This is meaningful context: the school's challenges are material, though this measure captures the school's standing among its county neighbors and does not speak to relative trajectories or school-specific efforts.

New Haven itself is a walkable, economically mixed city anchored by Yale University and Yale New Haven Hospital. Downtown is dense and mixed-use, with well-maintained parks and strong transit access through Union Station. The city is actively developing housing and has a bioscience employment base alongside education and healthcare. The school is located at 150 Fournier Street in the 06511 zip code, on the city's east side in a residential neighborhood.

The district has undertaken a substantive shift in literacy instruction. In 2023 it adopted a phonics-centered science of reading approach district-wide with a single K-6 core program, moving away from the prior model where students in the same grade could encounter different lessons across schools. This change is still taking root; reading growth rates have improved since implementation. The district has also faced budget constraints due to the end of federal pandemic funds and rising personnel costs, though a teachers' contract caps standard class sizes through 2026.

For a family considering King/Robinson, the immediate picture centers on weak standardized performance, particularly in upper elementary and middle grades. The school is in an active urban setting with city amenities and transit, and serves a community-centered, high-poverty student population. Families should seek direct conversation with the school about literacy progress and math support structures, specific curriculum resources for remediation, and how academic interventions are individualized.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 64%

School 4% · District 17% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 86%

School 6% · District 14% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 33 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 514%

School 14% · District 23% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 42 pts below county median

Grade 616%

School 16% · District 26% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 29 pts below county median

Grade 718%

School 18% · District 27% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 32 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 820%

School 20% · District 29% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Science

Grade 59%

School 9% · District 24% · ▼ 15 pts below district

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 33 pts below county median

Grade 820%

School 20% · District 25% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

This schoolNew Haven School District, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.