Jersey City’s Schools: Are They Good?
Jersey City School District
In the past decade, Jersey City has gone has become one of the most rapidly changing cities across the United States. This growth, fueled by the tremendous growth in commercial and real estate development and a new flow of capital invested into the city, has impacted every aspect of infrastructure at a pace that has been impossible to keep up with.
Once ranked as the 8th worst school district in New Jersey, Jersey City schools have experienced a transformation that is second to none. However, it is a transformation that some people have not yet caught up with - negative stereotypes surrounding the quality of a Jersey City education are still present today.
With the recent influx of new residents, the city’s schools have become increasingly more diverse economically, socially, and demographically. According to Public School Review, the public school system in Jersey City has climbed the ranks from one of the worst to one of the best school districts in the state. Serving more than 34,000 students, the district has the highest concentration of top ranked public schools in New Jersey.
Does Jersey City have good public schools?
However, some outdated information still continues to circulate.
Unfortunately for Jersey City students, negative and outdated information continues to perpetuate when there aren’t enough voices publicly sharing otherwise. Without knowing the details of the district’s success, some people still label them as being among the state’s lowest performing students. The graduation rate of students has increased from 67% in 2013 to 79% in 2018. This drastic uptick can only be attributed to the hard work and dedication of the teachers, staff and administration of the Jersey City School District who work tirelessly to ensure that Jersey City students receive the same (if not better) quality of education as other students around the state do.
Additionally, the enrollment of minority students is prevalent in the district with the student body consisting of more than 86% Black and Hispanic students. This is significantly higher than the public school average in New Jersey which is 56%. While having such a diverse student population may have contributed to some negative stereotypes regarding academics in the past, this diversity is now something to be celebrated in Jersey City’s schools. In such diverse environments, Jersey City’s children can spend time with other children, to learn communication skills and develop an understanding of different people and their points of view. While any form of interaction with others will help a child develop social skills, a diverse school environment makes a world of difference. Like the many challenges that Jersey City residents have been able to overcome, the education of the city’s children is just one more obstacle that has been overcome by it’s diverse highlighting the strength, viability and resiliency that make up this historic city’s legacy.
Jersey City School Rankings
While school rankings vary by location within the city, many of the local neighborhood schools are among those worthy of commendation for their hard work in improving academic performance and equity among students. More than a “just a few” of the local schools are not only noteworthy, but outrank the rest of the state and in some cases, the country. Some of Jersey City’s school rankings from Public School Review include the following:
Ranked in the top 1% in the state
Dr. Ronald McNair High School: #30 of 2,239 (Top 1%) (Math: 89% | Reading: 98%)
Cornelia F. Bradford School: #35 of 2,239 (Top 1%) (Math: 90-94% | Reading: 90-94%)
Ranked in the top 5% in the state
Infinity Institute Middle School: #66 of 2,239 (Top 5%) (Math: 84% | Reading: ≥95%)
Academy I: Middle School Math: 87% | Reading: 90%. Rank: 10/10 Top 5%
Ranked in the top 30% in the state
Michael Conti School: Math: 57% | Reading: 79%. Rank: 8/10 , Top 30%
Jotham W. Wakeman School: Math: 68% | Reading: 68%. Rank: 8/10, Top 30%
Patricia M. Noonan School Ps #26: Math: 65-69% | Reading: 65-69%. Rank: 8/10, Top 30%
Paul Rafalides School: Math: 55-59% | Reading: 70-74%. Rank: 8/10, Top 30%
Top Charter Schools
Soaring Heights Charter School: Math: 60-64% | Reading: 85-89%. Rank: 9/10, Top 20%
Overall, the the top-rated public schools in the community are evaluated based on a variety of measures, including academic performance and equity. Contrary to the some preconceived negative notions, Jersey City actually has one of the highest concentrations of top ranked public schools in the state. 4 of the city’s 39 public schools ranked in the top 5%.
So, are Jersey City schools really as bad as some people make them out to be? The answer is absolutely not.
F I N A L L Y H O M E E V E N T S