Best Elementary Schools in Scotch Plains, NJ

Summary:

The city of Scotch Plains, New Jersey is home to 5 elementary schools that are part of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District, which is ranked 137 out of 609 school districts in the state and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. These schools serve students from kindergarten through 4th grade and demonstrate strong academic performance, with several standout institutions.

Among the top-performing elementary schools in the district are J. Ackerman Coles Elementary School, which is ranked 113 out of 1,347 New Jersey elementary schools for the 2024-2025 school year and is the only school in the district to receive a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger. Howard B. Brunner Elementary School is also a standout, ranking 137 out of 1,347 and earning 4-star ratings for the 2024-2025 and 2022-2023 school years. These two schools consistently outperform the district and state averages in English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency.

While the schools in the Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District generally demonstrate strong academic performance, there are some areas of concern. All 5 elementary schools have the same chronic absenteeism rate of 14.9% for the 2023-2024 school year, which is higher than the district and state averages. Additionally, the schools have relatively low percentages of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, suggesting a relatively affluent student population. The district may need to address these issues to ensure continued academic success for all students.

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				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 English Language Arts 3rd Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 4th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 3rd Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 4th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
School One Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	563 Willow Avenue	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 322-7731	424	34	12.4	9.0%	229 (54.0%)	37 (8.7%)	85 (20.0%)	49 (11.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.4%)	67	455^th of 1347 public elementary schools	66.2%		74.4	361^st of 1338 public elementary schools	73.0%	94	44.1	75.7	54.9	70.5	$8,863	$53	$8,810
Howard B. Brunner Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	721 Westfield Road	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 889-2148	434	34	12.9	4.4%	252 (58.1%)	37 (8.5%)	62 (14.3%)	59 (13.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.3%)	89.2	137^th of 1347 public elementary schools	89.8%		89.3	127^th of 1338 public elementary schools	90.5%	10	67.1	85.7	75.8	82.2	$8,968	$35	$8,933
J. Ackerman Coles Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	16 Kevin Road	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(908) 757-7555	526	44	11.9	3.4%	329 (62.5%)	29 (5.5%)	62 (11.8%)	69 (13.1%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.6%)	33 (6.3%)	90.1	113^th of 1347 public elementary schools	91.6%		86.9	178^th of 1338 public elementary schools	86.7%	65	78.5	75.0	83.2	74.0	$7,390	$09	$7,381
Evergreen Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	2280 Evergreen Avenue	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 889-5331	449	37	12.0	2.2%	262 (58.4%)	35 (7.8%)	68 (15.1%)	57 (12.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (5.8%)	64	492^nd of 1347 public elementary schools	63.5%		70.6	412^th of 1338 public elementary schools	69.2%	80	47.3	61.3	64.2	55.0	$9,438	$41	$9,397
William J. McGinn Elementary School	Public	K-4	1100 Roosevelt Avenue	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(908) 233-7950	543	42	12.7	1.1%	364 (67.0%)	13 (2.4%)	63 (11.6%)	67 (12.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (6.6%)	87.1	169^th of 1347 public elementary schools	87.5%		87.4	162^nd of 1338 public elementary schools	87.9%	7	68.0	78.4	70.2	83.5	$8,178	$04	$8,174

Cities Near Scotch Plains

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Plainfield	1.22 mi	21	471^st
Edison	1.68 mi	20	181^st
Westfield	2.06 mi	14	39^th
South Plainfield	2.33 mi	9	295^th
Clark	2.51 mi	5	188^th

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.

Best Elementary Schools in Scotch Plains, NJ

J. Ackerman Coles Elementary School

Howard B. Brunner Elementary School

William J. McGinn Elementary School

School One Elementary

Evergreen Elementary School

Cities Near Scotch Plains