Hanover, Massachusetts
The Hanover Schools by the Numbers
A snapshot of one district that educates about 2,415 students across four schools. Detailed figures come from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
District Snapshot
Sources: Massachusetts DESE, school and district profiles.
High needs is a state count, not a score. It includes every student who is from a low income household, learning English, or receiving special education services, and counts each one only once. The median across all 396 Massachusetts districts is 46.7 percent.
District Overview
| District | Hanover |
| Enrollment | 2,415 |
| Schools | 4 |
| High school | Hanover High |
Student Population
For the precise current breakdown, see the DESE district profile.
| English learners | 1.2% |
| First language not English | 4.8% |
| Students with disabilities | 22.7% |
| High needs | 28.8% |
| Per-pupil spending (in-district) | $16,823.16 |
| Per-pupil spending (total) | $18,075.28 |
Academic Performance & Context
Hanover’s four-year graduation rate was 96.6%. MCAS results, graduation rates, and accountability data are published and updated each year by DESE. Because these change annually, this guide links to the live state profile rather than reprinting numbers that quickly go stale.
One number here is a civics fact rather than an education one. Per-pupil spending is not set in this building or by the Superintendent. It is voted at Town Meeting, in the same room, on the same night, by the same registered voters who vote everything else, and then a Proposition 2 1/2 override has to win a second time at the ballot box. On May 17, 2025, 5,252 Hanover voters turned out, more than four times the number who came the following year, and passed an override 3,121 to 2,068. On May 16, 2026 the town went back to the ballot for a debt exclusion toward a new South Shore Vocational Technical High School and approved that too, 815 to 359. Two ballots, two questions about school buildings and school budgets, both decided by the residents who filled out the form.
Sources
MA DESE, Hanover Student Profile (code 01220000). Accessed 2026. Ballot results: Town of Hanover official Annual Town Election results, May 17, 2025 and May 16, 2026, certified by the Town Clerk.