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Carl Sandburg Middle School

Q: Is Carl Sandburg Middle School a good school?

Carl Sandburg Middle School ranks 237 th of 752 New Jersey middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

237^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 752 New Jersey Middle Schools

Better than 68% of New Jersey middle schools

Summary

Carl Sandburg Middle School is a public middle school in Old Bridge, New Jersey, serving 957 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the Old Bridge Township School District, which is ranked 245 out of 609 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Academically, Carl Sandburg Middle School consistently performs above the state average in NJSLA/PARCC assessments for English Language Arts and Mathematics. The school's Algebra I proficiency rates for 8th graders are particularly impressive, reaching 96.6% in 2024-2025, significantly outpacing the state average of 72.7%. However, the school's chronic absenteeism rate has been increasing, from 8.8% in 2022-2023 to 14.9% in 2023-2024, which is higher than the state average.

Compared to nearby schools, Carl Sandburg Middle School generally performs on par or slightly better in academic assessments. But when compared to higher-performing schools outside the district, such as Marlboro Middle School and Marlboro Memorial Middle School, its performance appears relatively lower, particularly in Mathematics and Algebra I. The school's strong performance among African American and Hispanic students, as well as English Language Learners, is noteworthy, but the relatively lower performance of Asian and White students suggests potential achievement gaps that could be further investigated.

926

Students ?

11.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,950

Per pupil spending ?

30.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3439 Route 516
Old Bridge, NJ 08857

(732) 360-4400

District: Old Bridge Township School District

Students who attend Carl Sandburg Middle School usually attend:

High:

Old Bridge High School

Feeder schools for Carl Sandburg Middle School:

Elementary:	Leroy Gordon Cooper Elementary School
	Madison Park Elementary School
	Memorial Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

47.1%

Hispanic:

19.9%

Asian:

18.4%

See top rated New Jersey middle schools

Compare Carl Sandburg Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 63rd percentile in 2015 → 68th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the New Jersey average (52% vs 43% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 5 percentile points since 2015

✓Above the New Jersey median (68th percentile)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school52%

District avg49%

New Jersey avg43%

237^th of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Top 32%▲ up 6 pts since 2015

From top 37% (2015) to top 32% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Middle Schools in the Old Bridge Township School District

245^th of 609Old Bridge Township 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	64.6	237 of 752	68.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	60.1	276 of 743	62.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	66.1	216 of 748	71.1%	★★★★☆
2022	59.5	266 of 745	64.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	73.0	153 of 652	76.5%	★★★★☆
2019	66.4	237 of 745	68.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	60.1	281 of 716	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2017	63.7	252 of 712	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2016	61.1	254 of 713	64.4%	★★★☆☆
2015	59.5	264 of 713	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2014	69.7	253 of 717	64.7%	★★★☆☆
2013	62.4	320 of 704	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2012	67.1	281 of 677	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2011	64.2	296 of 684	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2010	64.3	296 of 677	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2009	62.4	322 of 664	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2008	62.3	306 of 640	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2007	59.5	337 of 631	46.6%	★★☆☆☆
2006	65.2	294 of 615	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2005	52.8	367 of 599	38.7%	★★☆☆☆
2004	57.5	332 of 588	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2003	53.3	357 of 574	37.8%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	79.9	37 of 359	89.7%	★★★★☆
2024	72.6	60 of 352	83.0%	★★★★☆
2023	76.7	49 of 361	86.4%	★★★★☆
2022	62.4	90 of 356	74.7%	★★★★☆
2021	84.8	20 of 291	93.1%	★★★★★
2019	80.0	40 of 326	87.7%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	32.8	153 of 204	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	45.7	117 of 200	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.6	129 of 201	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.7	137 of 200	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	54.2	65 of 147	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	31.3	143 of 199	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.1	154 of 200	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	74.6	43 of 343	87.5%	★★★★☆
2024	64.9	65 of 320	79.7%	★★★★☆
2023	70.9	41 of 288	85.8%	★★★★☆
2022	57.1	73 of 270	73.0%	★★★★☆
2021	89.3	9 of 197	95.4%	★★★★★
2019	74.2	32 of 227	85.9%	★★★★☆
2018	53.6	69 of 202	65.8%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	66.8	227 of 728	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	65.0	233 of 717	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	68.1	211 of 720	70.7%	★★★★☆
2022	65.8	212 of 726	70.8%	★★★★☆
2021	71.9	145 of 625	76.8%	★★★★☆
2019	65.9	238 of 703	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	62.5	266 of 680	60.9%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	66.4	158 of 608	74.0%	★★★★☆
2024	57.8	199 of 589	66.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	72.8	104 of 587	82.3%	★★★★☆
2022	60.2	176 of 591	70.2%	★★★★☆
2021	66.7	104 of 480	78.3%	★★★★☆
2019	61.0	170 of 524	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	53.4	211 of 504	58.1%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	68.2	119 of 613	80.6%	★★★★☆
2024	62.7	141 of 584	75.9%	★★★★☆
2023	70.5	79 of 568	86.1%	★★★★☆
2022	63.8	99 of 549	82.0%	★★★★☆
2021	77.0	42 of 467	91.0%	★★★★★
2019	73.5	81 of 541	85.0%	★★★★☆
2018	56.0	180 of 522	65.5%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	61.8	248 of 726	65.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	54.3	297 of 719	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	66.2	214 of 718	70.2%	★★★★☆
2022	58.4	257 of 730	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	73.1	141 of 635	77.8%	★★★★☆
2019	66.0	231 of 697	66.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.1	278 of 675	58.8%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	47.3	219 of 507	56.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	42.7	247 of 510	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	33.8	320 of 505	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	31.4	361 of 535	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.3	231 of 401	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.8	263 of 492	46.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.5	254 of 471	46.1%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	43.8	277 of 502	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.8	339 of 510	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	42.3	295 of 509	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	39.0	304 of 512	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	53.8	177 of 435	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.2	260 of 504	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.2	314 of 497	36.8%	★★☆☆☆

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)90th percentile+21 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)87th percentile+19 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)81st percentile+12 vs school

Hispanic (2025)74th percentile+6 vs school

Female (2025)69th percentile~ school

Male (2025)66th percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2025)57th percentile-12 vs school

White (2025)45th percentile-24 vs school

Asian (2025)25th percentile-43 vs school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Algebra I97%+51 vs state

English Language Arts62%+5 vs state

Mathematics42%+8 vs state

Science23%+4 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Great School! The teachers really cared about the students and made learning fun. From the first bell to the last the school was always full of energy. Ever school should be like this one. Close Quote

Schools Near Carl Sandburg 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 5th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 6th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 7th Grade	NJSLA English Language Arts 8th 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
Carl Sandburg Middle School	Public	6-8	3439 Route 516	Old Bridge	08857	Middlesex County	Old Bridge Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(732) 360-4400	926	82	11.2	30.7%	436 (47.1%)	105 (11.3%)	184 (19.9%)	170 (18.4%)	3 (0.3%)	3 (0.3%)	25 (2.7%)	64.6	237^th of 752 public middle schools	68.5%		60.1	276^th of 743 public middle schools	62.9%	39		23.4		69.9	56.7	60.4		53.3	38.2	32.6		96.6	96.6			$13,950	$64	$13,886
Jonas Salk Middle School	Public	6-8	155 W Greystone Road	Old Bridge	08857	Middlesex County	Old Bridge Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(732) 360-4519	886	78	11.4	25.1%	537 (60.6%)	69 (7.8%)	146 (16.5%)	106 (12.0%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	26 (2.9%)	67.8	215^th of 752 public middle schools	71.4%		64.1	242^nd of 743 public middle schools	67.4%	27		20.5		61.3	69.2	60.4		50.7	55.1	33.5		94.5	94.5			$13,625	$64	$13,561
Marlboro Memorial Middle School	Public	6-8	71 Nolan Road	Morganville	07751	Monmouth County	Marlboro Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(732) 972-7115	761	72	10.5	15.0%	388 (51.0%)	16 (2.1%)	61 (8.0%)	270 (35.5%)	7 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (2.5%)	83.5	94^th of 752 public middle schools	87.5%		87	65^th of 743 public middle schools	91.3%	29		33.0		79.2	78.7	68.5		61.6	64.6	46.9	100.0	96.9	98.0	100.0	100.0	$9,987	$02	$9,985
Sayreville Middle School	Public	6-8	800 Washington Road	Parlin	08859	Middlesex County	Sayreville School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(732) 525-5290	1,294	122	10.6	46.4%	460 (35.5%)	207 (16.0%)	343 (26.5%)	196 (15.1%)	11 (0.9%)	7 (0.5%)	69 (5.3%)	42.8	419^th of 752 public middle schools	44.3%		47.2	367^th of 743 public middle schools	50.6%	52		12.5		55.4	51.7	54.6		38.1	34.6	6.0	96.0	57.3	61.9	100.0	100.0	$8,185	$149	$8,036
Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School	Public	6-8	469 Matawan Avenue	Cliffwood	07721	Monmouth County	Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(732) 705-5400	835	80	10.4	34.5%	443 (53.1%)	65 (7.8%)	217 (26.0%)	53 (6.3%)	2 (0.2%)	5 (0.6%)	49 (5.9%)	67.7	217^th of 752 public middle schools	71.1%		64.9	236^th of 743 public middle schools	68.2%	19		18.0		67.8	74.5	69.2		40.3	46.1	35.4		95.5	96.5	100.0	100.0	$14,477	$141	$14,336
Spotswood Memorial Middle School	Public	6-8	115 Summerhill Road	Spotswood	08884	Middlesex County	Spotswood Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(732) 723-2200	269	25	10.7	30.9%	170 (63.2%)	8 (3.0%)	69 (25.7%)	10 (3.7%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.3%)	32.6	487^th of 752 public middle schools	35.2%		33	480^th of 743 public middle schools	35.4%	7		9.4		51.3	45.3	37.7		40.8	35.5	0.0		40.9	40.9			$11,377	$51	$11,326
Marlboro Middle School	Public	6-8	355 County Road 520	Marlboro	07746	Monmouth County	Marlboro Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(732) 972-2100	935	94	9.9	8.2%	652 (69.7%)	18 (1.9%)	76 (8.1%)	165 (17.6%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (2.4%)	76.3	149^th of 752 public middle schools	80.2%		78.8	132^nd of 743 public middle schools	82.2%	17		23.7		82.3	69.4	67.3		63.7	50.6	36.7	100.0	95.7	96.9	100.0	100.0	$9,749	$20	$9,729
South River Middle School	Public	6-8	3 Montgomery Street	South River	08882	Middlesex County	South River Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(732) 613-4073	524	51	10.1	66.8%	230 (43.9%)	29 (5.5%)	238 (45.4%)	9 (1.7%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (2.9%)	19.8	607^th of 752 public middle schools	19.3%		21.3	587^th of 743 public middle schools	21.0%	20		6.6		26.9	29.6	27.6		28.4	23.5	4.1		57.5	57.5			$10,158	$414	$9,744
Hammarskjold Upper Elementary School	Public	5-6	200 Rues Lane	East Brunswick	08816	Middlesex County	East Brunswick Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(732) 613-6892	1,221	119	10.2	25.1%	494 (40.5%)	68 (5.6%)	190 (15.6%)	414 (33.9%)	5 (0.4%)	9 (0.7%)	41 (3.4%)								(n/a)	40.8		66.4	68.3			67.5	58.9								$13,382	$119	$13,263
Beers Street School	Public	5-6	610 Beers Street	Hazlet	07730	Monmouth County	Hazlet Township Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(732) 264-1107	198	18	11.2	18.7%	149 (75.3%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (20.7%)	6 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.0%)								(n/a)	27.5		70.0	74.8			43.8	54.2								$9,122	$341	$8,781

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