The top reported proficiency rate is 47% in English language arts. The lowest is 36% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Elizabeth Carter Brooks
Elizabeth Carter Brooks is a regular public elementary school in New Bedford, Massachusetts, serving kindergarten through fifth grade. It is part of the New Bedford Public Schools district, a city system that has seen declining enrollment and recently adopted a new strategic plan centered on early childhood education, literacy, and family engagement.
The school sits in a city with a distinct identity. New Bedford is a dense, historically industrial port, still known as the nation’s highest-grossing commercial fishing port, and has a large Portuguese-American community. The downtown and waterfront anchor civic and cultural life, and the city is actively positioning itself around the emerging offshore wind industry. For a family living in or moving to New Bedford, the city offers a walkable historic core and a working waterfront economy, but the district brief notes that declining enrollment has prompted discussions about potential school facility consolidation, a factor worth monitoring if school assignments are a concern.
Academically, Elizabeth Carter Brooks participates in Massachusetts’ NextGen MCAS assessments. In the most recent testing year, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades placed below the midpoint when compared to districts across Bristol County. This means that, relative to its countywide peers, the school’s combined math and English language arts results fall on the lower side of the range. In English language arts specifically, the share of students scoring proficient or above has moved within a range over the past several years, most recently settling around the same level as earlier in the decade. In math, proficiency has also fluctuated year to year, with no clear upward or downward trend. Science results, which are tested in one elementary grade, showed a smaller share of students reaching proficiency than in English or math. A parent evaluating these numbers would find a school where academic performance has been steady rather than rising, and where achievement, particularly in math and science, is an area the district’s improvement plan might aim to address.
The student body is diverse. The largest group of students is white, followed by a substantial share of Hispanic students, a notable Black population, and a smaller share of students who identify as two or more races. Asian and American Indian or Alaska Native students make up very small shares. Data on the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, receive special education services, or are English learners was not available, so it is not possible to speak to the school’s economic or language-support profile. A parent should note this gap when considering the range of student needs the school serves.
As an elementary school that does not serve high school grades, Elizabeth Carter Brooks has no graduation rate to report, which is expected and not a mark against it. The school’s environment data, such as chronic absenteeism and discipline rates, was also not available in the source material, so those are gaps a family may want to explore by contacting the school directly.
The neighborhood context shows a market with home values near the state benchmark, which sits above the national figure, and rents that have been rising. For a family considering a move, this is a relatively expensive housing market compared with national averages, though it is in line with much of Massachusetts. The broader county market has seen a notable jump in pending listings, suggesting a competitive buyers’ environment.
The school itself is a regular, non-charter, non-magnet program. The district’s strategic plan promises investment in curriculum and technology, and its approved budget increased for the most recent fiscal year, which may bring new resources to schools like Elizabeth Carter Brooks. However, the broader enrollment decline means district leaders are actively discussing facility consolidation, a process that could change which buildings serve which neighborhoods.
For a family deciding whether this school is a fit, the picture is one of a city school in a historic port community, with a diverse student body and academic results that fall below the county midpoint. The district is investing in its future, including early literacy and career readiness, but also managing shrinking enrollment. A parent looking for strong, rising test scores would need to weigh the school’s current performance against those district priorities and might want to ask directly about how the new strategic plan is reaching this particular building.
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