•Overall: Harvard ranks higher, #21 to Ayer Shirley School District's #136 of 328 Massachusetts districts.
•MCAS 2026: Harvard students score higher: ELA 70% vs 41%, Math 69% vs 41% met expectations. Statewide: 40% and 41%.
•SAT: Harvard averages 178 points higher (1277 vs 1099).
•Spending: Harvard spends $6,292 more per student ($25,306 vs $19,014).
•Homes: Homes cost more in Harvard: single-family homes average $918K vs $548K. The average tax bill is $6,558 in Ayer Shirley School District and $14,562 in Harvard.
•Class size: Smaller in Harvard: 16.2 students on average vs 18.7.
MCAS results, 2026
Share of students meeting or exceeding expectations, all tested grades combined. Both districts test grades 3–10; "State" is the statewide figure for the same grades.
English Language ArtsHarvard ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
41%
Harvard
70%
State
40%
MathHarvard ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
41%
Harvard
69%
State
41%
ELA by year
Year
Ayer Shirley School District
Harvard
State
2026
41%
70%
40%
2025
42%
73%
42%
2024
45%
74%
41%
2023
49%
76%
45%
2022
47%
76%
43%
2021
49%
79%
48%
Math by year
Year
Ayer Shirley School District
Harvard
State
2026
41%
69%
41%
2025
39%
67%
41%
2024
39%
70%
42%
2023
42%
72%
42%
2022
41%
73%
40%
2021
30%
67%
35%
No test in 2020. Statewide 10th-grade results dropped after 2024, when passing the MCAS stopped being a graduation requirement.
High school results
Average SATHarvard ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
1099
Harvard
1277
MA avg
1113
AP exams scored 3+Harvard ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
68.6%
Harvard
87.5%
MA avg
69.1%
Four-year graduation rateAyer Shirley School District ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
96.8%
Harvard
93.8%
MA avg
92.4%
Averages of each district's ranked high schools. "MA avg" is the average of all districts with high school data.
Classrooms, teachers & spending
Average class sizeHigher in Ayer Shirley School District
Ayer Shirley School District
18.7
Harvard
16.2
MA avg
17.3
Attendance rateAyer Shirley School District ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
94.6%
Harvard
92.7%
MA avg
93.7%
Chronically absentmissed 10%+ of daysLower in Ayer Shirley School District
Ayer Shirley School District
13.1%
Harvard
19.8%
MA avg
16.9%
Teachers who stayedfrom last yearAyer Shirley School District ahead
Ayer Shirley School District
85.3%
Harvard
83.3%
MA avg
84.7%
Spending per studentHigher in Harvard
Ayer Shirley School District
$19,014
Harvard
$25,306
MA median
$21,765
Average teacher salaryHigher in Harvard
Ayer Shirley School District
$85,887
Harvard
$91,787
MA median
$91,393
Spending is total per-pupil expenditure from all sources in FY2024. Class size is the average across all classes in the district.
FY2026 averages for single-family homes from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue; for a district with several towns, the comparison uses the average of its towns. Assessed values usually run below recent sale prices.