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J Spencer Smith School

Public Grades K-5

114^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,347 New Jersey Elementary Schools

Better than 92% of New Jersey elementary schools

Summary

J Spencer Smith School is an exceptional elementary school in Tenafly Public School District, serving students from kindergarten to 5th grade. The school consistently ranks among the top elementary schools in New Jersey, with outstanding academic performance and a diverse student population.

J Spencer Smith School's students excel on standardized tests, with proficiency rates significantly higher than the state averages in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 83.3% of 4th-grade students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to the state average of 53.6%. The school also maintains a low student-teacher ratio and spends more per student than the state average, likely contributing to its strong academic results. While the school has experienced some fluctuations in chronic absenteeism, it continues to provide an exceptional educational experience for its students.

Compared to nearby schools, J Spencer Smith School and other elementary schools in the Tenafly Public School District consistently outperform schools in the Bergenfield Borough School District and Englewood Public School District, which generally have lower academic performance and proficiency rates. By maintaining its focus on academic excellence and addressing any areas of concern, J Spencer Smith School can continue to provide an exceptional educational experience for its diverse student population.

326

Students ?

11.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,277

Per pupil spending ?

1.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

101 Downey Drive
Tenafly, NJ 07670

(201) 816-7715

District: Tenafly Public School District

Students who attend J Spencer Smith School usually attend:

Middle:	Tenafly Middle School
High:	Tenafly High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

55.5%

Asian:

34.7%

Two or more races:

5.8%

See top rated New Jersey elementary schools

Compare J Spencer Smith School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 94th percentile in 2015 → 92nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the New Jersey average (75% vs 46% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 8% of New Jersey elementary schools

✓Small classes — about 12 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Near the bottom of Tenafly Public School District's ranking

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school75%

District avg78%

New Jersey avg46%

114^th of 1,347

New Jersey public elementary schools ?

Top 8%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 4Elementary Schools in the Tenafly Public School District

37^th of 609Tenafly Public School District among New Jersey districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	90.1	114 of 1347	91.5%	★★★★★
2024	93.4	57 of 1338	95.7%	★★★★★
2023	95.3	27 of 1342	98.0%	★★★★★
2022	93.2	76 of 1345	94.3%	★★★★★
2021	93.2	73 of 1317	94.5%	★★★★★
2019	87.9	126 of 1360	90.7%	★★★★★
2018	87.0	140 of 1353	89.7%	★★★★☆
2017	90.4	83 of 1352	93.9%	★★★★★
2016	93.0	52 of 1346	96.1%	★★★★★
2015	91.6	80 of 1357	94.1%	★★★★★
2014	87.9	39 of 1363	97.1%	★★★★★
2013	81.3	200 of 1367	85.4%	★★★★☆
2012	83.6	108 of 1363	92.1%	★★★★★
2011	84.9	79 of 1360	94.2%	★★★★★
2010	87.1	32 of 1354	97.6%	★★★★★
2009	86.6	58 of 1346	95.7%	★★★★★
2008	84.4	44 of 1338	96.7%	★★★★★
2007	81.6	77 of 1329	94.2%	★★★★★
2006	76.3	296 of 1314	77.5%	★★★★☆
2005	85.0	44 of 1303	96.6%	★★★★★
2004	87.4	24 of 1298	98.2%	★★★★★
2003	89.7	13 of 1204	98.9%	★★★★★

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	82.5	32 of 330	90.3%	★★★★★
2024	80.7	37 of 340	89.1%	★★★★☆
2023	85.7	18 of 346	94.8%	★★★★★
2022	77.6	61 of 348	82.5%	★★★★☆
2021	79.2	51 of 339	85.0%	★★★★☆
2019	68.4	107 of 370	71.1%	★★★★☆
2018	65.5	128 of 370	65.4%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	88.7	128 of 1326	90.3%	★★★★★
2024	90.9	87 of 1317	93.4%	★★★★★
2023	93.9	42 of 1318	96.8%	★★★★★
2022	92.3	71 of 1326	94.6%	★★★★★
2021	87.3	127 of 1290	90.2%	★★★★★
2019	87.9	101 of 1331	92.4%	★★★★★
2018	87.1	115 of 1333	91.4%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	88.9	116 of 1318	91.2%	★★★★★
2024	93.0	52 of 1313	96.0%	★★★★★
2023	95.0	30 of 1315	97.7%	★★★★★
2022	92.1	81 of 1324	93.9%	★★★★★
2021	95.2	30 of 1297	97.7%	★★★★★
2019	86.5	129 of 1335	90.3%	★★★★★
2018	83.5	187 of 1334	86.0%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	95.9	30 of 1023	97.1%	★★★★★
2024	75.2	163 of 989	83.5%	★★★★☆
2023	60.3	295 of 958	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	61.9	291 of 949	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	55.0	313 of 868	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	76.0	180 of 1007	82.1%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	69.5	281 of 970	71.0%	★★★★☆
2024	81.7	128 of 963	86.7%	★★★★☆
2023	88.0	74 of 975	92.4%	★★★★★
2022	81.7	140 of 976	85.7%	★★★★☆
2021	80.9	120 of 964	87.6%	★★★★☆
2019	78.1	165 of 1023	83.9%	★★★★☆
2018	76.0	199 of 1022	80.5%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Special Education (2025)97th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)91st percentile~ school

Female (2025)90th percentile~ school

Asian (2025)90th percentile~ school

White (2025)71st percentile-21 vs school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics78%+31 vs state

English Language Arts76%+26 vs state

Science61%+31 vs state

★

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Schools Near J Spencer Smith School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				NJSLA-S Science (2025)		NJSLA English Language Arts (2025)						NJSLA Mathematics (2025)						Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	NJSLA-S Science 5th Grade	NJSLA-S Science 8th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 3rd Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 4th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 5th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 6th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 7th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 8th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 3rd Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 4th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 5th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 6th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 7th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
J Spencer Smith School	Public	K-5	101 Downey Drive	Tenafly	07670	Bergen County	Tenafly Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 816-7715	326	28	11.6	1.5%	181 (55.5%)	1 (0.3%)	12 (3.7%)	113 (34.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.8%)	90.1	114^th of 1347 public elementary schools	91.5%		93.4	57^th of 1338 public elementary schools	95.7%	57	61.0		62.5	83.3	81.5				76.7	81.4	74.6				$11,277	$28	$11,249
Donald A. Quarles Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	186 Davison Place	Englewood	07631	Bergen County	Englewood Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 862-6113	434	37	11.7	70.7%	28 (6.5%)	71 (16.4%)	310 (71.4%)	10 (2.3%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.8%)								(n/a)															$15,225	$223	$15,002
Walter Stillman School	Public	PK, KG-5	75 Tenafly Road	Tenafly	07670	Bergen County	Tenafly Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 816-7710	314	28	11.1	3.2%	136 (43.3%)	5 (1.6%)	21 (6.7%)	136 (43.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.8%)	95.1	32^nd of 1347 public elementary schools	97.6%		93.1	60^th of 1338 public elementary schools	95.5%	28	75.4		81.1	86.0	86.6				83.1	88.0	80.3				$12,810	$25	$12,785
Dr. John Grieco Elementary School	Public	1-3	50 Durie Ave	Englewood	07631	Bergen County	Englewood Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 862-6164	499	50	10.0	78.4%	20 (4.0%)	105 (21.0%)	351 (70.3%)	6 (1.2%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	13 (2.6%)	23.9	1037^th of 1347 public elementary schools	23.0%					(n/a)			35.9						26.9						$10,768	$347	$10,421
Englewood on the Palisades Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	65 West Demarest Avenue	Englewood	07631	Bergen County	Englewood on the Palisades Charter School	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 569-9765	306	26	11.7	46.7%	9 (2.9%)	97 (31.7%)	160 (52.3%)	21 (6.9%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (5.2%)	30.9	941^st of 1347 public elementary schools	30.1%		33.3	894^th of 1338 public elementary schools	33.2%	47	18.9	3.0	29.7	52.9	40.5	45.9	40.0	60.6	29.7	44.1	21.6	29.7	17.2	36.4	$11,407	$533	$10,874
Ralph S Maugham School	Public	K-5	111 Magnolia Avenue	Tenafly	07670	Bergen County	Tenafly Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 816-7705	358	28	13.0	3.9%	206 (57.5%)	2 (0.6%)	32 (8.9%)	110 (30.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.2%)	90.5	107^th of 1347 public elementary schools	92.1%		86.1	192^nd of 1338 public elementary schools	85.7%	85	78.3		71.7	75.4	85.0				86.9	64.9	85.0				$9,945	$31	$9,914
North Cliff School	Public	PK, KG-2	700 Floyd St	Englewood Cliffs	07632	Bergen County	Englewood Cliffs School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 568-4770	149	11	13.2		40 (26.8%)	2 (1.3%)	7 (4.7%)	98 (65.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	1 (0.7%)								(n/a)															$14,076	$163	$13,913
Malcolm S Mackay School	Public	K-5	111 Jefferson Avenue	Tenafly	07670	Bergen County	Tenafly Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 816-7700	349	29	11.8	0.9%	147 (42.1%)	1 (0.3%)	28 (8.0%)	151 (43.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	20 (5.7%)	91.6	88^th of 1347 public elementary schools	93.5%		86.7	182^nd of 1338 public elementary schools	86.4%	94	67.9		72.1	81.4	76.0				84.1	77.3	78.5				$10,904	$29	$10,875
Hoover Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	273 Murray Hill Terrace	Bergenfield	07621	Bergen County	Bergenfield Borough School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 385-8582	261	25	10.6	57.1%	11 (4.2%)	25 (9.6%)	179 (68.6%)	41 (15.7%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.1%)	51.9	654^th of 1347 public elementary schools	51.4%		60.7	534^th of 1338 public elementary schools	60.1%	120	15.2		50.0	72.1	53.3				38.2	52.3	50.0				$12,367	$398	$11,969
Jefferson Elementary School	Public	K-5	200 Hickory Avenue	Bergenfield	07621	Bergen County	Bergenfield Borough School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(201) 385-8804	291	18	16.5	36.1%	42 (14.4%)	22 (7.6%)	148 (50.9%)	69 (23.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.1%)	60.3	531^st of 1347 public elementary schools	60.6%		59.8	547^th of 1338 public elementary schools	59.1%	16	39.4		40.8	67.3	75.9				38.9	36.5	65.5				$10,815	$59	$10,756

Frequently Asked Questions about J Spencer Smith School

What schools do graduates of J Spencer Smith School attend?

Students who attend J Spencer Smith School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Tenafly Middle School
High : Tenafly High School

How many students attend J Spencer Smith School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 326 students attended J Spencer Smith School.

What district is J Spencer Smith School in?

Tenafly Public School District

Is J Spencer Smith School a good school?

Yes. J Spencer Smith School ranks in the top 8.5% of New Jersey elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of J Spencer Smith School?

Students at J Spencer Smith School are 56% White, 35% Asian, 6% Two or more races, 4% Hispanic.

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the New Jersey Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.