Mahadev Maitri Foundation
US Initiatives

Connecticut

998 Schools197 Districts496K Students
$28,931
Avg Per-Pupil Spend
+102% nat'l
42.0%
Free Lunch Rate
-10.2pp vs nat'l
92.9%
Graduation Rate
+6.4pp vs nat'l
46/100
Opportunity Score
Moderate
⇄ Compare Connecticut with another state
About Connecticut Public Schools

Connecticut spends more per pupil than almost any state in the nation, yet it simultaneously hosts some of the most pronounced achievement gaps in the country — a paradox rooted in its extreme wealth inequality between affluent suburban towns like Greenwich and Darien and post-industrial cities like Bridgeport and New Haven. The state operates under the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) formula, which aims to redistribute funding toward lower-wealth municipalities, though advocates consistently argue it remains underfunded relative to its statutory targets. Connecticut has 169 municipalities, and most operate their own independent school district, creating a hyperlocal governance structure. The state's Smarter Balanced assessments place it consistently in the top tier nationally for suburban academic outcomes while urban districts continue to struggle with resource parity.

State Snapshot
State BoardConnecticut State Board of Education
AssessmentSmarter Balanced (SBAC)
Compulsory Ages5–18
School CalendarSchool year begins in late August or early September
Total Enrollment496,017
Public Schools998
Largest District
Bridgeport School District
19K students
Highest Per-Pupil
Cooperative Educational Services
$101,898/student
Top Graduation Rate
Trumbull School District
99.5% grad rate
School Districts (197)
Per-pupil spending in Connecticut ranges from $434 to $101,898 across districts with available data. State avg: $28,931.
DistrictSchoolsStudentsPer-PupilGrad RateFree LunchOpp.
Large Districts — 10,000+ Students
Bridgeport School District3619K$23,968↓17%78.0%↓16%80.7%↑92%43
New Haven School District3718K$25,592↓12%87.1%↓6%74.1%↑77%32
Waterbury School District2917K$23,280↓20%86.1%↓7%77.4%↑84%41
Hartford School District3916K$33,005↑14%89.5%78.3%↑86%37
Stamford School District2116K$26,804↓7%88.8%52.5%↑25%49
Danbury School District1912K$20,442↓29%83.0%↓11%48.1%↑15%40
Norwalk School District2111K$27,56492.4%50.4%↑20%52
Connecticut Technical Education and Career System1711K$515↓98%96.9%47.6%↑13%45
Medium Districts — 1,000–9,999 Students
Fairfield School District169,093$28,13498.8%↑6%17.1%↓59%63
West Hartford School District168,982$26,245↓9%97.0%25.9%↓38%32
New Britain School District148,841$30,09886.0%↓7%75.7%↑80%48
Capitol Region Education Council158,630$29,81893.8%66.1%↑58%44
Greenwich School District158,469$34,058↑18%97.0%18.1%↓57%54
Meriden School District138,028$22,334↓23%89.5%76.7%↑83%48
Bristol School District137,148$31,189↑8%91.4%53.4%↑27%—
Trumbull School District96,613$22,898↓21%99.5%↑7%17.8%↓58%58
Stratford School District136,511$26,444↓9%96.5%46.3%↑10%51
Southington School District136,087$22,540↓22%97.0%23.1%↓45%52
West Haven School District95,832$25,875↓11%90.0%57.2%↑36%48
East Hartford School District125,808$28,28793.0%66.8%↑59%38
Manchester School District105,786$35,477↑23%89.0%52.3%↑25%44
Glastonbury School District85,486$26,356↓9%99.5%↑7%13.0%↓69%57
Westport School District85,271$30,13899.5%↑7%2.4%↓94%—
Milford School District135,262$28,70697.7%↑5%27.8%↓34%50
Wallingford School District125,193$27,210↓6%96.1%32.3%↓23%52
Hamden School District105,009$33,145↑15%94.0%42.0%48
South Windsor School District64,748$24,634↓15%97.0%16.8%↓60%51
Darien School District74,678$33,477↑16%99.5%↑7%1.4%↓97%41
Enfield School District84,514$53,577↑85%90.0%44.6%↑6%38
Ridgefield School District94,465$28,09999.5%↑7%6.7%↓84%38
Shelton School District84,374$22,528↓22%93.0%32.4%↓23%52
Middletown School District104,310$33,618↑16%97.0%49.7%↑18%47
New Canaan School District54,149$28,78999.5%↑7%0.4%↓99%66
Cheshire School District74,134$24,479↓15%99.5%↑7%16.5%↓61%50
Naugatuck School District94,123$23,541↓19%90.0%55.6%↑32%41
Simsbury School District74,054$26,046↓10%98.0%↑5%15.5%↓63%45
Groton School District74,053$28,54189.0%44.4%↑6%41
Farmington School District74,024$24,729↓15%99.5%↑7%16.1%↓62%43
Newington School District73,911$26,289↓9%96.0%33.7%↓20%49
Newtown School District73,877$26,485↓8%98.0%↑5%13.8%↓67%46
Wilton School District43,737$28,63499.5%↑7%6.3%↓85%53
Torrington School District63,731$29,26588.0%↓5%61.6%↑47%45
New Milford School District53,639$22,159↓23%92.0%36.2%↓14%42
Wethersfield School District73,562$24,178↓16%96.0%28.0%↓33%53
Regional School District 1573,431$26,134↓10%98.0%↑5%13.4%↓68%48
Monroe School District53,367$22,623↓22%98.0%↑5%11.6%↓72%52
Windsor School District63,251$30,916↑7%91.0%40.9%44
Norwich School District103,217$39,477↑36%—71.5%↑70%44
Bethel School District53,184$23,205↓20%96.0%29.0%↓31%49
North Haven School District63,162$23,993↓17%97.0%23.5%↓44%—
Showing 50 of 197
Frequently Asked Questions
Data sourced from NCES Common Core of Data, EDFacts, and Opportunity Atlas. Figures reflect the most recent available federal dataset (2021-22 / 2022-23). Learn more about our data sources.