The top reported proficiency rate is 62% in Science. The lowest is 50% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Fall Brook
Fall Brook is a regular public elementary school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Leominster, Massachusetts, part of the Leominster public school district. The school is located on DeCicco Drive, on the north side of the city. Leominster itself has a layered identity: historically a plastics manufacturing hub, it has become a significant retail destination along the Route 2 and I-190 corridors, with shopping centers like the Mall at Whitney Field drawing regional traffic. Inexpensive land compared to communities closer to Boston has made it a commuter town for Worcester and, for longer drives, Boston, while preserving some of its industrial past. The city sits on roughly 29 square miles of mixed terrain, with a traditional downtown around Monument Square that hosts the annual Johnny Appleseed Festival and suburban-spread residential developments farther out. A major flood in September 2023 caused significant damage and a state of emergency, an event parents moving into the area may want to ask local officials about regarding drainage and rebuilding. The district brief turned up no recent district-level changes that would have a lasting impact on families, so the district's trajectory appears stable for now.
Fall Brook's enrollment is large for an elementary school. The student body is diverse in composition: the largest group is white students, followed closely by Hispanic students, with smaller shares of Black students, students of two or more races, and Asian students. Data on the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals was not available. The school serves only primary grades, so there is no graduation rate to report. Because it does not serve high school, metrics like AP course offerings or dual enrollment do not apply; parents wondering about those will need to look at Leominster's middle and high schools.
On the Massachusetts Next-Generation MCAS assessments, Fall Brook's students performed at a level that places the school above the midpoint among elementary and middle schools in Worcester County, in the top quartile of that set. More specifically, in the most recent testing year, math proficiency was moderate, with a majority of students scoring at the proficient or advanced level. Science proficiency was somewhat stronger, also above the majority mark. English language arts proficiency was lower, with about half of students meeting the proficient-or-above bar. That is a soft spot. Parents may want to ask the school about targeted reading support, especially for students who enter below grade level, as this subject has been the weakest area over time. Looking at trend data back several years, math proficiency has been variable, with a notable dip in the pandemic-affected 2020-21 school year, but has mostly settled in the range it occupies now. ELA proficiency has been fairly steady in the same range for the last several years, with no clear trend upward or downward. The school did not have chronic absenteeism data available, so it is not possible to assess how attendance patterns affect these results.
Housing in the Leominster area falls at a level below the Massachusetts statewide benchmark, making it a more affordable entry point into the state's housing market. The metro area has seen a moderate increase in both home values and rents in recent years. The local economy shows low unemployment nationally, and mortgage rates at the national level have been elevated. For a family considering Leominster, this means the school sits in a community that balances suburban convenience and retail access with a more moderate cost of housing than many closer-in towns, and the school itself offers academic results that are solid relative to its county peers, with room for improvement in reading.
See more original research from School Decision →