The top reported proficiency rate is 55% in English language arts. The lowest is 44% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Derry Village School
Derry Village School is a regular public elementary school serving kindergarten through fifth grade on South Main Street in Derry, New Hampshire. It belongs to the Derry Cooperative School District, the public system that carries Derry's children through the elementary and intermediate years before they move on to Pinkerton Academy, the independently incorporated school that functions as the town's high school. The school sits in Derry's compact historic downtown core, near the intersection of Routes 28 and the main east-west corridor through town.
Derry itself is a predominantly residential suburban community that grew dramatically from the 1980s through the 1990s, fed by its position between Boston to the south and Manchester to the northwest and by the construction of Interstate 93. Growth has since leveled off. The town retains a historic downtown with civic anchors like the Adams Memorial Building and Derry Opera House, alongside suburban residential neighborhoods and commercial strips along major routes. A former railroad line has been converted into the Rockingham Recreational Trail, and the Robert Frost Farm, a National Historic Landmark, sits as a separate cultural site. There is no passenger rail service in town; the nearest connection is at Haverhill station, well to the southeast.
On New Hampshire's state assessments, the NH SAS, Derry Village's third and fourth graders perform solidly. In English language arts, well over half of third and fourth graders reached proficiency, and in math the same grades posted proficiency rates above the midpoint. Participation is strong across every tested grade. These early-grade results suggest that the school's foundational instruction in reading and math is reaching a majority of students.
The picture shifts in fifth grade. Math proficiency drops notably from the third-grade level, and ELA declines as well, though less steeply. Science, tested only in fifth grade, lands in a middling range. This pattern of stronger early-grade performance followed by a fifth-grade dip is something a parent may want to look into further with the school, particularly to understand how instruction and support are structured as students approach the transition to intermediate school.
That transition recently changed. The district reconfigured West Running Brook from a middle school to an intermediate school serving grades five and six, opening in that new configuration in July 2024. For Derry Village families, this means the pathway out of elementary school now leads to a different grade configuration than it did for previous cohorts, and the fifth-grade assessment results at Derry Village may reflect the last year or years before that reconfiguration took full effect.
The student body is predominantly white, with a small Hispanic population and a small group identifying as two or more races. Asian and Black students each represent a tiny fraction of enrollment. Just under a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a relatively modest share and points to a community where economic need, while present, is not concentrated at the levels seen in many New Hampshire schools. Data on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not available, so those populations cannot be characterized here.
The housing market surrounding Derry Village reflects the broader Rockingham County picture. Home values in the school's zip code sit below the state benchmark but well above the national figure, and rents are moderate relative to the region. The county market has seen rising inventory and a growing supply of active listings, while homes are moving faster than they were a year ago, with median days on market dropping sharply. For families considering a move into the Derry Village attendance area, the market is active but not as tight as it was, and affordability relative to local incomes remains a real consideration given prevailing mortgage rates.
Several categories of information that would help round out a parent's understanding were not available. No data on staffing ratios, discipline, attendance, course access, or program offerings was provided. Civil rights data was absent as well. The school does not have a graduation rate, for the straightforward reason that it serves only elementary grades. State testing data is limited to grades three through five, the grades New Hampshire assesses, so kindergarten through second grade are not represented in the results.
What the available evidence shows is a traditional public elementary school in a mature suburban town, delivering solid early-grade instruction with a fifth-grade dip worth asking about, serving a relatively homogeneous and modestly advantaged student population, and feeding into a district that has recently reshaped its upper-grade pathway. Families looking for a neighborhood elementary school with a downtown Derry location and a conventional public-school experience will find that here. Those concerned about the fifth-grade numbers or wanting to understand special education and English learner services should bring those questions directly to the school.
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