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University Middle School

Public Grades 6-8

717^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 752 New Jersey Middle Schools

Better than 5% of New Jersey middle schools

Summary

University Middle School is a public middle school located in Irvington, New Jersey, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 665 students. The school is part of the Irvington Public School District, which is ranked 598 out of 609 districts in New Jersey and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger. University Middle School has consistently ranked in the bottom quartile of New Jersey middle schools, with a ranking between 561 and 717 out of around 750 schools.

University Middle School significantly underperforms compared to the state and district averages on standardized tests. In the 2024-2025 school year, the percentage of students proficient or better in English Language Arts ranged from 18.1% to 24.6% across grades 6-8, compared to the state average of 56.1% to 57.1%. In mathematics, the proficiency rates were even lower, ranging from 3.8% to 10.2%, compared to the state average of 20.7% to 39.8%. The school's performance on the Algebra I and Science assessments was also well below state and district levels. Additionally, University Middle School has struggled with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 13.2% to 21.9% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average.

When comparing University Middle School to other nearby middle schools, such as Union Avenue Middle School (also in the Irvington district) and schools in the East Orange and Hillside districts, University Middle School consistently underperforms on academic measures. For example, Union Avenue Middle School outperformed University Middle School by a significant margin on English Language Arts and Mathematics assessments. The school's low performance and high chronic absenteeism rates may be influenced by the district's overall low ranking and the high percentage of economically disadvantaged students, which likely contribute to the challenges faced by University Middle School in providing a high-quality education to its students.

719

Students ?

11.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,378

Per pupil spending ?

76.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

255 Myrtle Ave
Irvington, NJ 07111-2621

(973) 399-6879

District: Irvington Public School District

Students who attend University Middle School usually attend:

High:

Irvington High School

Feeder schools for University Middle School:

Elementary:	Berkeley Terrace Elementary School
	Chancellor Avenue Elementary School
	Florence Avenue Elementary School
	Grove Street Elementary School
	More...
	Madison Avenue
	Mt. Vernon Avenue Elementary School
	Thurgood Marshall Elementary School
	University Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

61.6%

Hispanic:

37.4%

White:

0.4%

See top rated New Jersey middle schools

Compare University Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 12th percentile in 2015 → 5th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 12 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the New Jersey average (30% vs 43% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (5th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 7 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school30%

District avg14%

New Jersey avg43%

717^th of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Bottom 5%▼ down 8 pts since 2015

From bottom 12% (2015) to bottom 5% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Middle Schools in the Irvington Public School District

598^th of 609Irvington 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	9.5	717 of 752	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.7	700 of 743	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.8	682 of 748	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.9	691 of 745	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.2	561 of 652	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	7.2	704 of 745	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.5	662 of 716	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	9.4	651 of 712	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	10.6	645 of 713	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	13.3	625 of 713	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	4.1	671 of 717	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	3.7	668 of 704	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	1.9	661 of 677	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	2.4	660 of 684	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	3.8	643 of 677	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	3.0	637 of 664	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	2.0	627 of 640	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	1.8	616 of 631	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	1.0	605 of 615	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	1.7	579 of 599	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	1.2	577 of 588	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	1.0	568 of 574	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	22.2	289 of 359	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.3	287 of 352	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.8	266 of 361	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.6	279 of 356	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	37.5	180 of 291	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	24.4	269 of 326	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.4	234 of 326	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	25.5	277 of 343	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.0	250 of 320	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.4	235 of 288	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.4	220 of 270	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.6	177 of 197	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.0	187 of 227	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.3	195 of 202	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	9.5	686 of 728	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.0	667 of 717	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.0	650 of 720	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.6	664 of 726	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.6	557 of 625	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	7.1	670 of 703	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.5	632 of 680	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	16.3	543 of 608	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.7	539 of 589	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.4	513 of 587	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.3	538 of 591	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.2	433 of 480	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.3	511 of 524	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.4	481 of 504	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	16.2	562 of 613	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	489 of 584	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.4	453 of 568	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.6	452 of 549	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.2	355 of 467	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.4	460 of 541	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.3	434 of 522	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	10.7	686 of 726	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.8	674 of 719	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.0	647 of 718	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.8	663 of 730	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	17.4	516 of 635	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	9.1	653 of 697	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.8	624 of 675	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	19.6	470 of 507	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.3	465 of 510	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.6	477 of 505	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	19.5	500 of 535	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	18.1	449 of 492	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.9	444 of 471	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2025)19th percentile+15 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)19th percentile+15 vs school

Hispanic (2025)11th percentile+6 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)8th percentile+4 vs school

Special Education (2025)7th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)6th percentile~ school

Male (2025)6th percentile~ school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Science100%+81 vs state

Algebra I54%+9 vs state

English Language Arts20%-36 vs state

Mathematics6%-28 vs state

★

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Schools Near University Middle School

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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)				NJSLA-S Science (2025)		NJSLA English Language Arts (2025)					NJSLA Mathematics (2025)					NJSLA Algebra I (2025)			NJSLA Geometry (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 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 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 End of Course	NJSLA Geometry 8th Grade	NJSLA Geometry End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
University Middle School	Public	6-8	255 Myrtle Ave	Irvington	07111	Essex County	Irvington Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 399-6879	719	60	11.9	76.8%	3 (0.4%)	443 (61.6%)	269 (37.4%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	9.5	717^th of 752 public middle schools	4.7%		10.7	700^th of 743 public middle schools	5.8%	17		1.3			18.1	18.8	24.6			3.8	10.2	3.9		54.2	54.2			$9,378	$185	$9,193
Pride Academy Charter School	Public, Charter	5-8	117 Elmwood Ave	East Orange	07018	Essex County	Pride Academy Charter School District	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 672-3200	300	19	16.0	78.3%	1 (0.3%)	281 (93.7%)	18 (6.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	51.5	341^st of 752 public middle schools	54.7%		60.3	273^rd of 743 public middle schools	63.3%	68	13.3	12.0		40.0	46.7	58.7	68.0		28.0	25.4	54.7	24.0						$7,531	$934	$6,597
Union Avenue Middle School	Public	6-8	427 Union Ave	Irvington	07111	Essex County	Irvington Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 399-6885	735	47	15.8	79.9%	1 (0.1%)	495 (67.3%)	232 (31.6%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	2 (0.3%)	15	658^th of 752 public middle schools	12.5%		16.1	644^th of 743 public middle schools	13.3%	14		3.3			33.3	32.0	27.5			10.0	13.2	3.1		100.0	100.0			$9,597	$204	$9,393
South Orange Middle School	Public	6-8	70 North Ridgewood Road	South Orange	07079	Essex County	South Orange-Maplewood School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(973) 378-2772	752	77	9.7	11.6%	420 (55.9%)	152 (20.2%)	68 (9.0%)	29 (3.9%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	79 (10.5%)	68	213^th of 752 public middle schools	71.7%		65.3	230^th of 743 public middle schools	69.0%	17		36.1			74.8	74.4	64.2			62.4	31.6	3.1	84.1	51.3	69.3	78.8	78.8	$6,366		$6,366
Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation	Public	8	400 Central Ave	Orange	07050	Essex County	ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 677-4135	397	48	8.2	65.7%	1 (0.3%)	187 (47.1%)	207 (52.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26.8	541^st of 752 public middle schools	28.1%		29.7	512^th of 743 public middle schools	31.1%	29		4.9					45.1					12.3		96.6	96.6			$12,917	$383	$12,534
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		$8,834
Discovery Charter School	Public, Charter	4-8	240 Halsey St	Newark	07102	Essex County	Discovery Charter School	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 623-0222	99	6	15.8	84.8%	0 (0.0%)	81 (81.8%)	17 (17.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	67.7	218^th of 752 public middle schools	71.0%		62.3	257^th of 743 public middle schools	65.4%	39	24.0	29.4	58.3	54.2	73.9	80.0	75.1	46.2	36.0	25.0	30.0	52.9						$11,745	$906	$10,839
Patrick F. Healy Middle School	Public	6-8	116 Hamilton St	East Orange	07017	Essex County	East Orange School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 266-5670	322	21	15.7	14.0%	20 (6.2%)	231 (71.7%)	67 (20.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (0.9%)	11.1	693^rd of 752 public middle schools	7.8%		9.6	708^th of 743 public middle schools	4.7%	15		1.3				18.4	10.2				9.1	6.1						$11,816	$431	$11,385
Sojourner Truth Middle School	Public	6-8	116 Hamilton St	East Orange	07017	Essex County	East Orange School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 266-5665	264	20	13.4	27.3%	12 (4.5%)	194 (73.5%)	53 (20.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	1 (0.4%)	2 (0.8%)								(n/a)					18.6					4.4								$12,234	$381	$11,853
John L. Costley Middle School	Public	6-8	116 Hamilton St	East Orange	07017	Essex County	East Orange School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 266-5660	334	25	13.4	9.9%	15 (4.5%)	235 (70.4%)	76 (22.8%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	2 (0.6%)	9.4	718^th of 752 public middle schools	4.5%		10.1	704^th of 743 public middle schools	5.2%	14		0.9				8.5	16.7				4.1	12.3						$14,015	$675	$13,340

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