Newton Public Schools is a district with a 96.6% graduation rate and a dropout rate near zero — the kind of numbers that look great on a brochure. But dig one layer into the district's new annual report, and the picture splits sharply along racial lines: 75% of students overall scored proficient in math and reading last year, compared with just 37% of Black students and 48% of Latino students.

Superintendent Anna Nolin said the FY26 Annual Report, presented to the School Committee in April, was built to answer that exact question head-on. "Are we improving student outcomes in ways that are measurable, meaningful and equitable?" she wrote. "This report is designed to answer those questions clearly and honestly."

The gap shows up everywhere, not just on tests

Black and Latino students also completed fewer advanced high school courses than their peers. So did students with individualized education plans (over 18% of the district), English language learners (about 7%) and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (15-18%).

The student body is changing faster than the staff is

White students made up 58% of Newton's roughly 11,800 students five years ago; that's down to 52% now, as Hispanic, Asian and multiracial enrollment ticks up and 82 languages fill the hallways. But the Black student population has stayed flat at 5% for five years straight — and the staff has barely budged either. Nearly 85% of NPS employees are White; Black staff grew from just 4% to 6% since 2021, Latino staff from 3% to 4%.

A 60-year-old program with new leadership

This year marked the 60th anniversary of Newton's METCO program, the largest in Massachusetts, which buses 431 students — about 3.1% of enrollment — from Boston and Springfield into Newton schools. Its longtime director, Lisa Gilbert-Smith, was just named interim principal of Newton North High School for next year.

What the district is doing about it

Nolin told families in June that most elementary students are at or above grade level, though gaps persist through middle and high school. The district is running a math summer camp in August for about 200 middle schoolers who weren't at grade level as of January.