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Best Public Schools in Newark, NJ


At a glance
84
Schools
63,650
Students
20
Districts
1
5-star school
Top rankedScience Park High School11th of 434 New Jersey high schools
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Biggest riser
Philip's Academy Charter School up 90 spots statewide this year
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Smallest classes
John F. Kennedy School 6.5 students per teacher
SchoolDigger ratings
3★
2★
1★
0★
13 schools without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)
Summary:

Newark has 81 schools—53 elementary, one middle, 21 high and six alternative—with grade spans that vary; the records here cover only a subset. Results for the supplied schools differ sharply, even among schools serving the same grade. In 2025–2026, grade 8 ELA proficiency ranged from 100% at The Gray Charter School to 25% at Thirteenth Avenue School, against 53% statewide. The most important takeaway is that Newark’s supplied school results are highly uneven, so a citywide picture can hide substantial differences between individual schools.

The Gray Charter School and Science Park High School stand out at the top. Gray reached 100% in grade 8 ELA and 90% in grade 8 math, compared with state results of 53% and 23%; Science Park had 96% in grade 9 ELA and 72% in grade 11 science, versus 51% and 29% statewide. Robert Treat Academy Charter School also exceeded the state in ELA grades 3–8 and math grades 3–7. At the other end, Thirteenth Avenue had 2% in grade 3 ELA and 0% in grade 8 math; Eagle Academy for Young Men of Newark had 4% in grade 9 ELA and 0% in Algebra I.

Results can move in different directions by subject: at North Star Academy Charter School, average ELA proficiency across the same grades fell from 67% in 2024–2025 to 55% in 2025–2026, while math rose from 48% to 54%. SchoolDigger rankings also shifted: Science Park improved from 46th of 429 schools in 2023–2024 to 11th of 434 in 2025–2026, while LEAD Charter School moved from 366th to 433rd. Context measures don’t neatly explain results: Gray’s student–teacher ratio was 19.2 and it reported 73% free/reduced lunch eligible (sy 2024–2025); Robert Treat reported 79% free/reduced lunch eligible (sy 2024–2025), while both schools had strong results in several grades.

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private




Cities Near Newark

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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.

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