Learning and Growth
As Horace Mann, the “father of public education” once noted and has been repeated by many contemporary scholars, “Public education is the great equalizer in a democratic society.” It is a promise made to every family that opportunity is widely available for their children to grow and give back.
In New Hampshire, we have a rich history of independence and innovation when it comes to education. Our pre-K-12 public schools are ranked nationally in the top three by US News and World Report and are driven by innovations that give students hands-on learning opportunities and move towards locally-developed, meaningful assessments. We do things differently here in NH and it’s working. Does that mean everything in NH public education is perfect? Of course not – but it does mean we have built a strong foundation for even higher achievement.
Defining NH's Public Education System
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The Impact of the Community’s Educational Attainment
In New Hampshire, much like the rest of the nation, higher educational attainment leads to greater economic security: larger concentrations of community members with bachelor’s degrees are associated with higher household incomes and lower unemployment rates. Educational attainment is also associated with teacher salaries: communities with greater concentrations of bachelor’s and graduate degrees tend to pay their teachers more.
Educational attainment may also indirectly reflect other community level factors for which we do not have data. For example, we are unable to collect community level data on health and wellness outcomes, environmental factors, community violence, substance use, mental health, and childhood trauma, abuse, and neglect, but research shows clear relationships between these factors and student learning. Higher education is positively associated with many of these outcomes, but we do not have the data at this time to test this hypothesis.
The Latest: Learning
In an effort to keep Granite Staters well informed about the state of our public education system and the policy that impacts it, Reaching Higher NH is proud to provide in-depth research and analysis. Explore our recent content below.
The 2026 Legislative Session
Here are the bills being considered by the NH State Legislature that impact student learning and growth: