County directory · Massachusetts · 2026–27
School districts in Essex County, MA
Essex County has 32 regular public school districts, enrolling 106,766 students in 2024–25. The largest is Lynn (16,364 students, 15% of the county), followed by Lawrence and Haverhill. 28 of the 32 offer kindergarten. Massachusetts sets no statewide kindergarten cutoff.
The 32 districts, largest first
| District and office | Grades | Schools | Students | Kindergarten | District office contact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lynn 195 Market Street, Lynn | Pre-K–12 | 29 | 16,364 | 1,118 | (781) 593-1680 |
| Lawrence 237 Essex Street, Lawrence | Pre-K–12 | 26 | 13,313 | 935 | (978) 975-5905 |
| Haverhill 4 Summer Street, Haverhill | Pre-K–12 | 16 | 7,940 | 585 | (978) 374-3405 |
| Methuen 9 Branch Street, Methuen | Pre-K–12 | 6 | 6,464 | 441 | (978) 722-6001 |
| Peabody 27 Lowell Street, Peabody | Pre-K–12 | 11 | 5,774 | 440 | (978) 536-6500 |
| Andover 30 Whittier Court, Andover | Pre-K–12 | 10 | 5,414 | 388 | (978) 623-8501 |
| Beverly 70 Balch St, Beverly | Pre-K–12 | 8 | 4,503 | 366 | (978) 921-6100 |
| North Andover 566 Main Street, North Andover | Pre-K–12 | 7 | 4,416 | 330 | (978) 794-1503 |
| Salem 29 Highland Avenue, Salem | Pre-K–12 | 11 | 3,831 | 297 | (978) 740-1212 |
| Danvers 64 Cabot Road, Danvers | Pre-K–12 | 7 | 3,238 | 231 | (978) 774-4800 |
| Gloucester 2 Blackburn Drive, Gloucester | Pre-K–12 | 7 | 2,838 | 232 | (978) 281-9800 |
| Saugus 25 Dow Street, Saugus | Pre-K–12 | 4 | 2,675 | 203 | (781) 231-5000 |
| Marblehead 9 Widger Road, Marblehead | Pre-K–12 | 5 | 2,564 | 165 | (781) 639-3140 |
| Pentucket 22 Main Street, West Newbury | Pre-K–12 | 6 | 2,238 | 163 | (978) 363-2280 |
| Lynnfield 525 Salem Street, Lynnfield | Pre-K–12 | 5 | 2,178 | 165 | (781) 334-9200 |
| Newburyport 70 Low Street, Newburyport | Pre-K–12 | 4 | 2,107 | 106 | (978) 465-4457 |
| Swampscott 207 Forest Avenue, Swampscott | Pre-K–12 | 3 | 2,094 | 134 | (781) 596-8800 |
| Triton 112 Elm Street, Byfield | Pre-K–12 | 5 | 2,074 | 144 | (978) 465-2397 |
| Greater Lawrence Regional Vocational Technical 57 River Rd, Andover | 9–12 | 1 | 1,837 | — | (978) 686-0194 |
| Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School District 562 Maple Street, Danvers | 9–12 | 1 | 1,830 | — | (978) 304-4700 |
| Amesbury 5 Highland Street, Amesbury | Pre-K–12 | 5 | 1,793 | 143 | (978) 388-0507 |
| Hamilton-Wenham 5 School Street, Wenham | Pre-K–12 | 5 | 1,669 | 117 | (978) 468-5310 |
| Ipswich 1 Lord Square, Ipswich | Pre-K–12 | 4 | 1,563 | 103 | (978) 356-2935 |
| Masconomet 20 Endicott Rd, Boxford | 7–12 | 2 | 1,477 | — | (978) 887-2323 |
| Whittier Regional Vocational Technical 115 Amesbury Line Rd, Haverhill | 9–12 | 1 | 1,285 | — | (978) 373-4101 |
| Georgetown 51 North Street, Georgetown | Pre-K–12 | 3 | 1,197 | 97 | (978) 352-5777 |
| Manchester Essex Regional 36 Lincoln Street, Manchester | Pre-K–12 | 4 | 1,190 | 67 | (978) 526-4919 |
| Boxford 28 Middleton Road, Boxford | Pre-K–6 | 2 | 778 | 105 | (978) 887-0771 |
| Middleton 28 Middleton Road, Boxford | Pre-K–6 | 2 | 730 | 76 | (978) 887-0771 |
| Rockport 24 Jerdens Lane, Rockport | Pre-K–12 | 2 | 631 | 42 | (978) 546-1200 |
| Topsfield 28 Middleton Road, Boxford | Pre-K–6 | 2 | 598 | 60 | (978) 887-0771 |
| Nahant 290 Castle Road, Nahant | Pre-K–6 | 1 | 163 | 21 | (781) 581-1600 |
Essex County at a glance
Together the 32 districts run 205 schools from offices in 26 towns. The smallest by enrollment is Nahant, with 163 students; the median Essex County district has 2,094. By grade span: 24 Pre-K–12, 4 Pre-K–6, 3 9–12 and 1 7–12. Without kindergarten: Greater Lawrence Regional Vocational Technical (9–12), Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School District (9–12), Masconomet (7–12) and Whittier Regional Vocational Technical (9–12).
Kindergarten in 2024–25, counting the 28 districts that report a K grade: 7,274 children. The biggest kindergarten was Lynn's, with 1,118; Lawrence had 935, and the smallest, Nahant, had 21.
Essex County holds 32 of Massachusetts's 323 regular districts (9.9%) and 12% of its 867,740 public school students, ranking 4th of 14 counties by number of districts and 3rd by enrollment. By size, 6 enroll 5,000 or more, 21 enroll 1,000 to 4,999 and 5 have fewer than 1,000 students, and the average school here has about 521 students.
Which district am I in?
Each district draws its own attendance zones, so your home address decides it. There is no address lookup here; ask the district. Each one's own site:
Lynn · Lawrence · Haverhill · Methuen · Peabody · Andover · Beverly · North Andover · Salem · Danvers · Gloucester · Saugus · Marblehead · Pentucket · Lynnfield · Newburyport · Swampscott · Triton · Greater Lawrence Regional Vocational Technical · Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School District · Amesbury · Hamilton-Wenham · Ipswich · Masconomet · Whittier Regional Vocational Technical · Georgetown · Manchester Essex Regional · Boxford · Middleton · Rockport · Topsfield · Nahant
What grade will my child be in?
More in Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts district by county · Massachusetts kindergarten cutoff
More Massachusetts county directories: Barnstable County (17) · Berkshire County (16) · Hampshire County (19) · Norfolk County (35) · Plymouth County (30) · Worcester County (51)