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Rafael Hernandez School

Public Grades PK, KG-8

1315^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,347 New Jersey Elementary Schools

Better than 2% of New Jersey elementary schools

Summary

Rafael Hernandez School is an elementary school serving 653 students in grades PK-8 in Newark, New Jersey, which is part of the Newark Public School District. Unfortunately, the school has consistently ranked in the bottom 5% of New Jersey elementary schools over the past decade, with a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Rafael Hernandez School significantly underperforms compared to the district and the state on standardized test scores, with only 9.7% of 3rd graders proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 27.7% for the district and 44.9% statewide. The school's math proficiency rates are also extremely low, with 0% of 8th graders reaching proficiency. Additionally, the school struggles to support the academic achievement of its diverse student population, ranking in the bottom 50% of New Jersey elementary schools for African American, Hispanic, English Language Learner, Special Education, and Economically Disadvantaged students. The school also has high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 11.5% to 22.1% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average.

Interestingly, the nearby schools in the Newark Public School District, such as Franklin Elementary, Luis Muñoz Marín Elementary, and First Avenue School, generally outperform Rafael Hernandez School on academic measures, despite being part of the same low-performing district. In contrast, the charter schools like Maria Varisco Rogers and Robert Treat Academy significantly outperform Rafael Hernandez School and the district overall, with much higher proficiency rates, especially in English Language Arts, and better outcomes for student subgroups.

713

Students ?

16.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$8,503

Per pupil spending ?

82.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

345 Broadway
Newark, NJ 07104

(973) 481-5004

District: Newark Public School District

Students who attend Rafael Hernandez School usually attend:

High:	Barringer High School
	Central High School
	East Side High School
	Malcolm X Shabazz High School
	More...
	Technology High School
	Weequahic High School
	West Side High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

80.6%

African American:

15.0%

White:

3.1%

See top rated New Jersey elementary schools

Compare Rafael Hernandez School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 3rd percentile in 2015 → 2nd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the New Jersey average (10% vs 44% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (2nd percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (22% vs 15% New Jersey)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school10%

District avg24%

New Jersey avg44%

Elementary school

1,315^th of 1,347

New Jersey public elementary schools ?

Bottom 2%▼ down 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

723^rd of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Bottom 4%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

36^th of 38Elementary Schools in the Newark Public School District

534^th of 609Newark 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	5.6	1315 of 1347	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.0	1270 of 1338	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.5	1282 of 1342	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.1	1304 of 1345	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.2	1303 of 1317	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	5.8	1297 of 1360	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	5.4	1305 of 1353	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	3.9	1317 of 1352	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	3.8	1319 of 1346	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	5.0	1314 of 1357	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	6.1	1282 of 1363	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	3.0	1327 of 1367	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	7.8	1266 of 1363	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	41.2	944 of 1360	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	28.8	1080 of 1354	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	4.7	1283 of 1346	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	26.3	1110 of 1338	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	1.6	1302 of 1329	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	6.4	1220 of 1314	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	3.4	1252 of 1303	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	5.8	1214 of 1298	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	3.6	1134 of 1204	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	17.4	380 of 463	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	21.7	394 of 469	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.8	376 of 463	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.5	427 of 494	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.6	452 of 456	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.8	499 of 522	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.9	435 of 517	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	15.7	553 of 597	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	22.3	475 of 559	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.9	301 of 463	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.6	305 of 434	29.7%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	5.7	1272 of 1326	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.0	1206 of 1317	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.4	1197 of 1318	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.9	1243 of 1326	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.9	1281 of 1290	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.2	1260 of 1331	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	4.6	1279 of 1333	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	11.5	932 of 1032	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.7	862 of 989	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.9	889 of 982	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.3	867 of 953	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.2	893 of 896	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.8	765 of 899	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.9	754 of 870	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	11.0	983 of 1023	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.3	824 of 939	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.0	749 of 839	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.0	768 of 948	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	13.9	886 of 942	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	7.4	1244 of 1318	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.0	1201 of 1313	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.4	1244 of 1315	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.6	1265 of 1324	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	6.0	1260 of 1297	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.5	1243 of 1335	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.0	1235 of 1334	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	14.1	945 of 1023	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	28.3	663 of 989	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	20.4	758 of 958	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.5	815 of 949	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.2	934 of 1007	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.3	912 of 1001	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	9.1	723 of 752	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	621 of 743	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.3	616 of 748	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.1	668 of 745	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	8.2	635 of 652	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.9	693 of 745	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.0	682 of 716	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	13.8	615 of 712	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	8.0	670 of 713	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	9.2	666 of 713	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	4.5	668 of 717	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	5.0	658 of 704	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	8.1	617 of 677	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	22.9	558 of 684	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	21.6	560 of 677	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	2.6	642 of 664	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	6.2	590 of 640	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	3.0	605 of 631	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	2.4	587 of 615	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	1.7	577 of 599	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	3.2	551 of 588	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	1.5	559 of 574	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2024	12.1	328 of 352	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.7	310 of 361	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.2	294 of 356	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	15.8	280 of 291	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.1	302 of 326	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.9	303 of 326	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	20.6	316 of 343	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	29.2	247 of 320	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	44.7	126 of 270	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	32.8	144 of 227	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	26.9	148 of 202	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	9.0	695 of 728	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.3	584 of 717	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.7	572 of 720	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.7	645 of 726	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.5	581 of 625	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.8	660 of 703	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.4	646 of 680	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	13.2	570 of 608	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.9	469 of 589	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.0	402 of 587	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	17.6	529 of 591	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.4	453 of 480	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.5	477 of 524	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.0	474 of 504	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	13.7	577 of 613	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	25.5	420 of 549	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.2	447 of 541	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	11.0	682 of 726	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.8	605 of 719	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.6	600 of 718	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.6	667 of 730	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.0	610 of 635	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.1	642 of 697	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.3	646 of 675	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	26.2	394 of 507	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.4	378 of 510	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.8	463 of 505	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.5	522 of 535	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	18.2	447 of 492	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.1	452 of 471	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

African American (2025)18th percentile+16 vs school

Hispanic (2025)10th percentile+7 vs school

Special Education (2025)8th percentile+5 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)7th percentile+5 vs school

Male (2025)6th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)4th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)4th percentile~ school

Middle school

Special Education (2025)22nd percentile+18 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)8th percentile+4 vs school

African American (2024)7th percentile-10 vs school

Hispanic (2025)6th percentile~ school

Male (2025)6th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)6th percentile~ school

Female (2025)5th percentile~ school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts13%-40 vs state

Mathematics8%-33 vs state

Science3%-21 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a student
Wednesday, November 10, 2010

I use to be a student there, I was the first group to graduate in 1995 and it was the best experience ever. Close Quote

Schools Near Rafael Hernandez School

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)		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 3rd 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 3rd Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 4th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 5th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 6th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 7th Grade	NJSLA Mathematics 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Rafael Hernandez School	Public	PK, KG-8	345 Broadway	Newark	07104	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 481-5004	713	44	16.2	82.9%	22 (3.1%)	107 (15.0%)	575 (80.6%)	4 (0.6%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	5.6	1315^th of 1347 public elementary schools	2.4%		8	1270^th of 1338 public elementary schools	5.1%	45	3.2	3.3	9.7	13.2	10.5	15.1	16.7	16.1	15.4	7.3	9.7	8.8	9.1	0.0			$8,503	$721	$7,782
Roberto Clemente Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	257 Summer Ave	Newark	07104	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 268-5290	742	44	16.8	86.7%	13 (1.8%)	80 (10.8%)	641 (86.4%)	2 (0.3%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	22.5	1055^th of 1347 public elementary schools	21.7%		16.8	1119^th of 1338 public elementary schools	16.4%	64	3.7	3.4	30.2	36.7	28.6	40.1	26.9	29.4	41.6	39.0	12.2	25.0	12.8	9.6			$10,558	$393	$10,165
Robert Treat Academy Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	443 Clifton Avenue	Newark	07104	Essex County	Robert Treat Academy Charter School	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 482-8811	702	37	18.9	79.1%	8 (1.1%)	222 (31.6%)	450 (64.1%)	5 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (2.1%)	63.3	500^th of 1347 public elementary schools	62.9%		56.6	587^th of 1338 public elementary schools	56.1%	87	20.8	17.6	61.1	71.5	59.8	61.1	88.4	78.4	61.1	49.4	53.2	48.1	59.8	18.4	75.0	75.0	$11,271	$984	$10,287
Branch Brook School	Public	PK, KG-4	228 Ridge St	Newark	07104	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(973) 268-5220	60	9	6.6	65.0%	1 (1.7%)	12 (20.0%)	46 (76.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																	$13,757	$376	$13,381
Washington Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	80 Belgrove Dr	Kearny	07032	Hudson County	Kearny	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 955-5100	557	56	10.0	83.5%	80 (14.4%)	18 (3.2%)	426 (76.5%)	24 (4.3%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	7 (1.3%)	18.3	1121^st of 1347 public elementary schools	16.8%		19.7	1079^th of 1338 public elementary schools	19.4%	42	18.4		32.8	22.0	31.8	25.9			25.9	23.6	21.5	23.2					$9,579	$665	$8,914
Franklin Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	42 Park Ave	Newark	07104	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 268-5250	725	55	13.1	91.2%	9 (1.2%)	82 (11.3%)	624 (86.1%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.0%)	13.7	1193^rd of 1347 public elementary schools	11.4%		13.7	1170^th of 1338 public elementary schools	12.6%	23	13.7	9.2	9.7	19.3	30.1	27.8	31.1	41.9	15.8	19.1	27.4	20.3	16.3	11.9			$12,556	$386	$12,170
Garfield Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	360 Belgrove Dr	Kearny	07032	Hudson County	Kearny	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(201) 955-5090	428	42	10.3	75.5%	89 (20.8%)	6 (1.4%)	308 (72.0%)	17 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.9%)	20	1100^th of 1347 public elementary schools	18.3%		24.8	1009^th of 1338 public elementary schools	24.6%	91	14.0		28.3	33.4	23.2	36.9			35.2	24.5	14.1	34.0					$7,609	$569	$7,040
Luis Munoz Marin Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	663 Broadway	Newark	07104	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 268-5330	818	59	13.8	86.7%	17 (2.1%)	154 (18.8%)	640 (78.2%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.5%)	22.1	1059^th of 1347 public elementary schools	21.4%		12.2	1203^rd of 1338 public elementary schools	10.1%	144	21.3	4.7	17.1	20.0	44.5	34.5	29.2	25.7	18.0	17.1	52.5	26.2	10.6	19.8			$9,330	$803	$8,527
Maria Varisco Rogers Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	233 Woodside Ave	Newark	07104	Essex County	Maria L. Varisco-Rogers Charter School	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 481-9001	572	40	14.3	88.5%	7 (1.2%)	21 (3.7%)	539 (94.2%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	56.5	591^st of 1347 public elementary schools	56.1%		49.4	675^th of 1338 public elementary schools	49.6%	84	28.1	9.5	68.4	89.8	68.3	68.4	61.6	65.0	52.6	25.4	29.7	29.6	16.9	0.0	21.2	21.2	$14,257	$1,003	$13,254
First Avenue School	Public	PK, KG-8	214 First Ave	Newark	07107	Essex County	Newark Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 268-5240	1,084	76	14.2	85.9%	20 (1.8%)	58 (5.4%)	968 (89.3%)	14 (1.3%)	7 (0.6%)	14 (1.3%)	3 (0.3%)	45.8	730^th of 1347 public elementary schools	45.8%		39.2	808^th of 1338 public elementary schools	39.6%	78	20.5	8.4	45.8	53.8	60.0	42.5	53.7	54.8	58.2	43.2	41.8	28.8	30.9	16.5	91.3	91.3	$8,759	$532	$8,227

Frequently Asked Questions about Rafael Hernandez School

What district is Rafael Hernandez School in?

Newark Public School District

What is the racial makeup of Rafael Hernandez School?

Students at Rafael Hernandez School are 81% Hispanic, 15% African American, 3% White.

Is Rafael Hernandez School a good school?

Rafael Hernandez School ranks in the bottom 2.4% of New Jersey elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of Rafael Hernandez School attend?

Students who attend Rafael Hernandez School usually go on to attend:

High : Barringer High School
High : Central High School
High : East Side High School
High : Malcolm X Shabazz High School
High : Technology High School
High : Weequahic High School
High : West Side High School

How many students attend Rafael Hernandez School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 713 students attended Rafael Hernandez School.

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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.