The top reported proficiency rate is 42% in English language arts. The lowest is 18% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Hurley K-8 School
Hurley K-8 School serves students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade in Boston’s South End. It is a regular public school within the Boston Public Schools district, and the data available does not indicate magnet or Title I status. The school is relatively small for a K-8 building, and it draws from a neighborhood that is densely urban, walkable, and rich in civic and cultural institutions. Boston itself is a dense, mixed-use capital city where finance, professional services, information technology, higher education, and biotechnology anchor the economy. The school is located on Worcester Street, a short distance from the historic core, and sits in a zip code where housing values are well above the state average and where rents are also elevated, making this an expensive part of the city for families to live.
The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with that group making up a substantial majority of enrollment. White students account for the next largest share, followed by much smaller shares of Black students, students of two or more races, Asian students, and American Indian or Alaska Native students. The free-or-reduced-price lunch data was not available for this school, so a full picture of economic need cannot be drawn from the provided data. Similarly, counts for students with individualized education plans and English learners were not reported, which means a parent may want to ask the school directly about the level of special education and language support services available.
On state assessments, the school’s results show a mixed picture. In English language arts, just under half of students in grades three through eight scored proficient or above. In math, the proficient rate was lower, at roughly a third of students. Science results, tested in a narrower grade band, were similar to math. Social studies, tested only in eighth grade, had a much lower rate of proficiency. Looking at the trend over time, English language arts proficiency was higher in the years before the pandemic, reaching around six in ten students, but has settled in the low-to-mid forties since then. Math proficiency followed a similar trajectory: pre-pandemic rates were around half of students, dropped sharply in the 2020-21 school year, and have recovered only partially to about a third of students. A family should note that the social studies test had a cut-score change, so direct comparison with prior years is not straightforward.
When compared to other districts in Suffolk County, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits in the top quartile. That is a stronger showing than many schools in the county, though the county includes a wide range of settings from high-poverty urban schools to more affluent institutions, so the comparison set is broad. The graduation rate metric does not apply here because the school does not serve high school grades.
The search for recent district-level changes in Boston Public Schools turned up little of lasting impact. The available search results covered Boston neighborhoods and general city topics rather than district policy or budget shifts, so no specific recent changes to programming, boundaries, or leadership were identified. Parents may want to check directly with the school or district for any updates.
Discipline data, staffing ratios, and course access information were not available in the provided data, leaving gaps in understanding the school environment and the range of academic pathways offered. For an eighth grader, the social studies results are worth a closer look, and families should ask about the middle school experience, including how the school prepares students for high school placement. The school operates in a city with a deep history of public education, and its location in the South End places it near many of Boston’s cultural and civic resources, but the academic numbers suggest that while the school performs above the typical Suffolk County level, it faces real challenges in bringing math and social studies proficiency higher.
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