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Best Public Schools in Hillside, NJ

At a glance

Schools

2,957

Students

Top rankedHillside Innovation Academy299^th of 752 New Jersey middle schools

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Biggest riser

Hurden Looker Elementary School up 102 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Deanna G. Taylor Academy 10.1 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

3★

2★

1★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

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Summary:

The Hillside, New Jersey school district consists of 7 schools, including 4 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 high school. The district as a whole is ranked 474 out of 609 in New Jersey and is rated 1 star out of 5 by SchoolDigger, indicating significant room for improvement.

Within the district, a few schools stand out. Hillside Innovation Academy, a middle school, has consistently ranked among the top 25% of New Jersey middle schools over the past 3 years, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger and significantly higher proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics compared to the district and state averages. Hurden Looker Elementary School has also performed better than the district and state averages in English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency across multiple grade levels, with a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger. In contrast, other schools like Deanna G. Taylor Academy and Walter O. Krumbiegel Middle School are struggling, with proficiency rates well below the state averages.

The Hillside Public School District faces significant challenges, including high rates of chronic absenteeism across all schools and a predominantly economically disadvantaged student population, as evidenced by the high percentages of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. However, the data also reveals pockets of success within the district, suggesting that identifying and replicating the practices and strategies used in higher-performing schools could help improve outcomes for the entire district.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				NJGPA English Language Arts (2025)	NJGPA Mathematics (2025)	NJSLA-S Science (2025)			NJSLA English Language Arts (2025)							NJSLA Mathematics (2025)						NJSLA Algebra I (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	NJGPA English Language Arts 11th Grade	NJGPA Mathematics 11th Grade	NJSLA-S Science 5th Grade	NJSLA-S Science 8th Grade	NJSLA-S Science 11th 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 English Language Arts 9th 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	NJSLA Algebra I 7th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I 9th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I End of Course	Total
Hillside High School	Public	9-12	1085 Liberty Ave	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	911	67	13.5	66.5%	67 (7.4%)	499 (54.8%)	329 (36.1%)	6 (0.7%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.2%)	7 (0.8%)	22.2	347^th of 434 public high schools	20.0%		29.9	311^th of 429 public high schools	27.5%	36	74.8	32.3			11.7							27.9									9.5	9.5	$7,219
Deanna G. Taylor Academy	Public	2-6	614 Tillman St	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	202	20	10.1	72.8%	20 (9.9%)	111 (55.0%)	62 (30.7%)	3 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.5%)	3 (1.5%)	20.1	1096^th of 1347 public elementary schools	18.6%		26.3	991^st of 1338 public elementary schools	25.9%	105			11.1			31.6	42.9	42.4	33.4				30.0	25.0	13.9	15.0							$13,412
Hurden Looker Elementary School	Public	2-6	1261 Liberty Ave	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	408	32	12.7	78.2%	46 (11.3%)	164 (40.2%)	187 (45.8%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	4 (1.0%)	46.1	723^rd of 1347 public elementary schools	46.3%		37.8	825^th of 1338 public elementary schools	38.3%	102			24.3			42.1	59.5	72.0	60.9				34.2	36.3	42.9	26.5							$6,063
Walter O. Krumbiegel Middle School	Public	7-8	145 Hillside Ave	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	323	30	10.7	73.1%	15 (4.6%)	178 (55.1%)	128 (39.6%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16.3	649^th of 752 public middle schools	13.7%		13.8	669^th of 743 public middle schools	10.0%	20				0.7						39.3	28.2						10.8	6.5		75.0		69.2	$8,834
Abram P. Morris Early Childhood Center	Public	PK, KG-1	143 Coe Ave	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	625	49	12.7	69.3%	77 (12.3%)	287 (45.9%)	243 (38.9%)	9 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.3%)								(n/a)																							$7,179
Ola Edwards Community School	Public	2-6	1530 Leslie St	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 352-7664	391	34	11.5	82.9%	38 (9.7%)	188 (48.1%)	154 (39.4%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.5%)	34.7	886^th of 1347 public elementary schools	34.2%		33.8	885^th of 1338 public elementary schools	33.9%	1			20.2			36.6	34.6	58.8	61.9				40.0	19.3	43.4	18.0							$5,766
Hillside Innovation Academy	Public	7-8	195 Virginia St-1100 Woodruff	Hillside	07205	Union County	Hillside Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(908) 352-7664	97	6	16.1	67.0%	8 (8.2%)	60 (61.9%)	25 (25.8%)	2 (2.1%)	1 (1.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	56.3	299^th of 752 public middle schools	60.2%		71.6	184^th of 743 public middle schools	75.2%	115				7.8						90.9	90.2						21.7	12.5	42.9	56.3		48.6

Cities Near Hillside

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Elizabeth	0.96 mi	39	448^th
Newark	1.15 mi	88	459^th
Union	1.2 mi	12	393^rd
Irvington	1.52 mi	13	531^st
Maplewood	2.33 mi	6	162^nd

See the top NJ New Jersey cities

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.