Walnut Square School 2025 DESE Report Card

February 3, 2026

Dear Families:

Every year, each public school and school district in Massachusetts receives a report card. Just as your child’s report card shows how they are doing in different subjects, the school’s report card is designed to show families how our school is doing in different areas. A link to our school’s report card is available at https://walnutsquare.haverhill-ps.org/. The direct link to the 2025 Walnut Square School DESE School report card is https://reportcards.doe.mass.edu/2025/01280080.

The report card includes multiple measures of a school’s performance – more than just MCAS scores. It represents a new way of looking at school performance by providing information on student achievement, teacher qualifications, student learning opportunities, and more.

Report cards are designed to be useful tools for everyone connected to our school. Families can use the information to have meaningful conversations with us about what the school is doing well and where there is room for improvement. Community and education leaders can use the information to better understand how to support students and our school.

You will notice on our report card that we have achieved the “Meeting or Exceeding Targets” classification, with a cumulative criterion-referenced target percentage of 97%. A strength is the school’s attendance and engagement; the attendance rate improved and is higher than the state average, and the chronic absenteeism rate has improved and is lower than the state average. Furthermore, the school shows a perfect 100% participation rate in the arts, demonstrating a commitment to a well-rounded education. The arts are a fundamental component of a well-rounded education, fostering essential skills like divergent thinking, creativity, and collaboration that complement traditional academic subjects. Walnut Square School also maintains a highly qualified teaching staff, with 100% of teachers licensed in their assigned areas.

While the school is exceeding its growth and improvement targets, there are still opportunities to grow regarding academic achievement. Current MCAS data show that 31% of students are meeting or exceeding expectations in ELA, and 29% are doing so in Mathematics. While these numbers represent progress from the previous year, they remain below the state averages, indicating that the school must continue its push to close the proficiency gap. To improve student performance at our school, we are focused on achieving the goals and initiatives outlined in our School Improvement Plan. We encourage you to become involved in helping us improve our school. Families are critical partners in the success of our students and school, and we are grateful for your continued support.

Finally, if your child attends a school that receives federal Title I funds, you also have the right to request the following information about the qualifications of your child’s classroom teachers:

Whether your child’s teacher is licensed in the grade levels and subject areas they teach,
Whether your child’s teacher is teaching under an emergency license or waiver,
The college degree and major of your child’s teacher, and
Whether your child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, their qualifications.

If you have questions about our school’s report card, would like to become involved in school improvement activities, or would like to request information about the qualifications of your child’s classroom teacher, please contact me. To see our district’s report card or to search for other schools’ report cards, visit reportcards.doe.mass.edu or click on the links shared above.

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Walnut Square School 2025 DESE Report Card