The Birches Academy of Academics - Art a Public Charter Sch, Salem NH

Original Research by School Decision on The Birches Academy of Academics - Art a Public Charter Sch

The Birches Academy of Academics and Art is a small K-through-8 public charter school in Salem, New Hampshire, occupying a second-floor space on South Broadway. It is a school where the arts have long been part of the identity, but the formal curricular direction has shifted. In 2022, the school moved from its original arts-integrated model to a STEAM framework, bringing 3D printing, robotics, and engineering projects into regular instruction while keeping the arts as an area of focus. That same year, the school received a National Blue Ribbon School designation from the U.S. Department of Education, a recognition of overall academic excellence that remains part of its standing profile.

The school serves a small enrollment across all nine grade levels, with roughly equal class sizes from first grade onward and a slightly larger kindergarten group. The student body is predominantly white, with small representations of Asian, Hispanic, multiracial, and Black students. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch is very low. Data on individualized education programs and English learner status was not available, so those populations, if present, are not captured here.

On New Hampshire's state assessments, the most recent results tell a split story. In the early grades, proficiency is strong. Third and fourth graders perform well above halfway to full proficiency in both math and English language arts, with math in particular standing out in fourth grade. English language arts results across grades three through seven mostly hold in the upper range, suggesting that reading and writing instruction is a consistent strength through the middle grades.

Math tells a different story as students move up. Proficiency declines steadily from fifth grade onward, dropping sharply by seventh grade and falling to a quite low level in eighth grade. Science results, tested only in fifth and eighth grades, sit below the midpoint as well. A parent looking at the upper-grade math and science numbers may want to ask the school how it supports students through the transition to more abstract content and what interventions or curricular adjustments are in place. Every tested grade shows full participation, so these results reflect the entire cohort rather than a subset.

Because the school ends at eighth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and the state does not test kindergarten through second grade, so no assessment data exists for those early years.

Salem itself is a suburban town that has grown steadily over decades as part of Greater Boston. It sits along Interstate 93 and has developed into a regional commercial hub for the northern stretch of the metro area, anchored by the Mall at Rockingham Park and the newer Tuscan Village mixed-use complex built on the former Rockingham Park race track site. Commercial life stretches along Route 28 and clusters near the highway exits rather than forming a traditional walkable downtown. The town is primarily car-dependent, with limited bus shuttle service and no dense pedestrian core. Canobie Lake Park, a large amusement park, and America's Stonehenge are among the town's best-known attractions, and the Manchester and Lawrence Railroad rail trail offers a recreational path.

Housing in the school's zip code sits well above the New Hampshire state benchmark and far above the national level, reflecting Salem's position in the Greater Boston commuter market. Rents are also elevated. A family considering the area should expect suburban housing costs that come with proximity to a major metro corridor. Mortgage rates in the current environment add to that cost picture.

The Birches Academy fits a family looking for a small, publicly funded charter option with a STEAM orientation and an arts foundation, in a town that offers strong commercial amenities and highway access but little in the way of traditional urban walkability. The school's early-grade academic results are a genuine strength. The upper-grade math and science decline is a soft spot worth investigating directly with the school before committing to the later years there.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 363%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 473%

School 73% · District 73%

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 548%

School 48% · District 48%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 639%

School 39% · District 39%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 733%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 819%

School 19% · District 19%

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 360%

School 60% · District 60%

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 469%

School 69% · District 69%

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 568%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 655%

School 55% · District 55%

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 763%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 48%

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Science

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 40%

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 833%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

This schoolThe Birches Academy of Academics & Art A Public Charter Sch, 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.