Natchaug School, Willimantic CT - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Natchaug School

Natchaug School is a kindergarten through fifth-grade school in Willimantic serving a small enrollment. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. This is a working-class community school.

On the most recent state assessments, proficiency across tested subjects and grades shows mixed results. In mathematics, proficiency ranges considerably by grade, with fourth grade performing notably better than third and fifth grades. In English language arts, results similarly vary: third grade's proficiency data was suppressed by the state, fourth grade shows lower proficiency, and fifth grade performs somewhat better. Science proficiency for fifth grade was also suppressed. Across all tested grades and subjects combined, the school's overall proficiency index is in the bottom quartile relative to districts in the Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region.

The school sits within Willimantic, a historic mill town and former textile center now anchored by Eastern Connecticut State University. Main Street forms a walkable downtown core with shops, restaurants, and civic life, though the wider area is car-dependent. The housing stock blends Victorian-era homes near downtown with Cape Cods and ranches on larger lots further out. The local economy centers on education, healthcare, and retail, with the university and a community hospital as major employers.

Willimantic itself is in transition. Downtown revitalization has brought adaptive reuse of former mill buildings into residential lofts and apartments, and the state continues funding affordable-housing projects. The town has a large renter population and relatively low homeownership, characteristic of an urban neighborhood within a broader town.

At the district level, Windham School District is undergoing substantial change. A major elementary school consolidation was put to voters in November 2025, proposing a new consolidated K-4th grade building that would reshape how the district's youngest students are educated. Related to this, Windham Center School closed, and its students were reassigned to other buildings. Additionally, the town completed a property revaluation as of 2023, which reset property assessments and changed the combined mill rate for 2024-2025, affecting what homeowners actually pay in local school taxes.

A parent may want to look into the school's current support structures and instructional priorities with the principal or district, given the proficiency gaps visible in the testing data. The consolidation and building closures unfolding in the district may also be relevant if you are considering stability and long-term school assignments for your children.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 317%

School 17% · District 28% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 38 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 31% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 29% · ▼ 12 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 425%

School 25% · District 31% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 33% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

This schoolWindham 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.