Summary:
The School District of the Chathams serves 3,548 students across six schools, with grade spans ranging from PK–2 to grades 9–12. Most reported test results are well above state rates, but the clearest academic concern is Chatham Middle School’s eighth-grade math: proficiency was 7% versus 23% statewide in 2025–2026, a 16-point deficit, following an 11-point deficit the prior year.
Milton Avenue School stands out in reported third-grade results, with 89% proficient in both ELA and math in 2024–2025. That was 20 points above the other three schools’ ELA average and 11 points above their math average. Southern Boulevard School had the lowest reported third-grade results—65% in ELA and 76% in math—but remained 20 and 26 points above state rates, respectively. Chatham High School also has favorable completion and attendance indicators: its graduation rate was 93%, and chronic absenteeism was 6%, compared with 14% statewide.
Results vary by grade and subject, rather than showing a uniform trend: among comparable 2025–2026 rows, average school advantages were 27 points in ELA and 25 points in math, with the middle school’s eighth-grade math pulling down the latter. Across matched results from both years, the average school–state gap widened by about 1 point, but Lafayette Avenue School and the middle school improved on average while the high school’s gap narrowed. SchoolDigger ranks the district 46 of 607 New Jersey districts, with five stars; it ranks Milton Avenue 11 of 1,347 schools. Student–teacher ratios range from 9.4 to 12.0, averaging 10.6. All six schools report free/reduced lunch eligible in 2024–2025, with shares of 2%–4%; these figures are context, not an explanation of results. Reported test results do not cover every school-grade combination.
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