A B for teachers and a C overall.
That’s the combination facing one Cheshire County school district in Niche’s latest evaluations—a reminder that the biggest letter on the report card doesn’t explain everything underneath it.
Niche’s 2027 Cheshire County listing, its latest available edition, includes four districts with verifiable overall grades ranging from B− to C−. Monadnock Regional, Hinsdale and Jaffrey-Rindge Cooperative receive the three lowest grades within that group; Keene receives B−.
The comparison covers Niche’s county listing, rather than every public district serving Cheshire County. Hinsdale and Jaffrey-Rindge share the lowest grade, C−, and remain tied below.
Under its published methodology, Niche combines academics, teachers, culture and diversity, resources, extracurricular opportunities and student and parent feedback, so standardized tests don’t determine the result alone.
This article compares overall letter grades, rather than numerical ranking positions.
Monadnock Regional School District — Overall Niche Grade: C
Monadnock Regional’s report card has some noticeably brighter spots than its overall C suggests.
The district serving Fitzwilliam, Gilsum, Richmond, Roxbury, Swanzey and Troy earns B for teachers and resources and facilities, plus B+ for sports, on its 2027 Niche profile. Academics receive C+, while administration and college preparation each receive C.
For scale, federal education records show approximately 1,610 students in 2024–25.
The distinction is useful: Niche’s evaluation is more favorable toward the district’s teaching staff, facilities and athletic opportunities than toward its overall academic picture.
That gives families several separate findings to consider, rather than one blanket verdict on the schools their children attend.
Hinsdale School District — Overall Niche Grade: C−, tied
Hinsdale is the smallest district in this comparison, but its teacher grade holds up alongside its larger neighbor.
Niche gives the district B for teachers in its 2027 evaluations. Separately, federal 2024–25 records show 520 students and approximately 10 students per full-time-equivalent teacher. That’s a staffing ratio, not a promise of 10 children in every classroom.
The district serving Hinsdale also offers a route beyond conventional classroom instruction. Its 2025–30 strategic plan describes extended learning opportunities such as internships, community projects and independent studies that count toward school credit.
For students who benefit from connecting coursework with practical experience, that is a meaningful feature to weigh alongside the overall C−.
Jaffrey-Rindge Cooperative School District — Overall Niche Grade: C−, tied
Jaffrey-Rindge’s category grades make for an uneven report card: B+ for sports, C for academics and D+ for administration.
Those marks appear on the district’s 2027 Niche profile, which also awards C+ for teachers and B− for resources and facilities.
Serving Jaffrey and Rindge, the district’s school system includes Jaffrey Grade School, Rindge Memorial School and Conant Middle High School. Its athletic grade stands out as a strength within an otherwise more modest evaluation.
The administration grade is unfavorable and worth reporting plainly. It does not, by itself, establish a particular management failure or explain what any individual family experiences.
Taken together, the categories identify different areas to examine: academic support, leadership and communication, as well as opportunities outside the classroom.
Jaffrey-Rindge shares Hinsdale’s overall C−; neither receives a lower grade than the other.
What families should take from the grades
Niche’s evaluations offer a starting point, especially when the category grades point in different directions. They are one organization’s assessments, shaped by data and feedback from districts with different sizes, demographics and student needs.
Receiving one of the lowest grades in this county listing does not automatically establish poor statewide performance.
Look at individual school outcomes, explore programs and ask how students receive help when they need it. A report card is worth opening. So is the school’s front door.
