New Salem, Massachusetts
The New Salem Schools by the Numbers
A snapshot of the district New Salem shares with Wendell, which educates about 140 students, and of the regional district its older students join. 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 | New Salem-Wendell |
| Enrollment | 140 |
| Schools | 1 (Swift River School) |
| Grades 7 to 12 | Ralph C. Mahar Regional, Orange |
Student Population
For the precise current breakdown, see the DESE district profile.
| English learners | 0.0% |
| High needs | 45.7% |
| Per-pupil spending (in-district) | $27,551.16 |
Academic Performance & Context
The Swift River School is a preschool through grade 6 district, so it has no graduation rate of its own. Its graduates continue to Ralph C. Mahar Regional in Orange, the regional junior-senior high school New Salem shares with Orange, Petersham, and Wendell under School Union 73. MCAS results and accountability data for both districts are published and updated each year by DESE, so this guide links to the live state profile rather than reprinting numbers that quickly go stale.
Sources
MA DESE, New Salem Student Profile (code 07280000). Accessed 2026.