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Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation

Public Grades 8

541^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 752 New Jersey Middle Schools

Better than 28% of New Jersey middle schools

Summary

Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation is a public middle school in Orange, New Jersey, serving 353 students in grade 8. The school is part of the Orange Board of Education School District, which is ranked 488 out of 609 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Orange Preparatory Academy consistently ranks in the bottom half of New Jersey middle schools, typically in the 400s or 500s out of around 750 schools. The school's performance on state assessments is significantly below the state averages, with only 45.1% of 8th graders proficient or better in ELA and just 12.3% proficient or better in math in 2024-2025. However, the school performs better in Algebra I, with 96.6% of 8th graders proficient or better, likely due to the school's practice of enrolling 8th graders in this course. The school's science proficiency rate is also very low, at just 4.9% in 2024-2025.

Compared to nearby schools, Liberty Middle School and South Orange Middle School in the neighboring West Orange and South Orange-Maplewood districts significantly outperform Orange Preparatory Academy, while the John L. Costley Middle School and Sojourner Truth Middle School in the East Orange School District perform even worse. The school also faces a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 4.9% in 2022-2023 to 14.9% in 2023-2024.

397

Students ?

8.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,917

Per pupil spending ?

65.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

400 Central Ave
Orange, NJ 07050-2420

(973) 677-4135

District: ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION School District

Students who attend Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation usually attend:

High:

Orange High School

Feeder schools for Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation:

Elementary:	Cleveland Street Elementary School
	Forest Street Community Elementary School
	Heywood Avenue Elementary School
	Lincoln Avenue Elementary School
	More...
	Oakwood Avenue Community School
	Park Avenue Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

52.1%

African American:

47.1%

American Indian:

0.5%

See top rated New Jersey middle schools

Compare Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 8th percentile in 2012 → 28th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 20 percentile points since 2012

✓Small classes — about 8 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the New Jersey average (21% vs 38% meeting standards)

!Science scores 14 pts below the New Jersey average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school21%

District avg26%

New Jersey avg38%

541^st of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Bottom 28%▼ down 9 pts since 2016

From bottom 37% (2016) to bottom 28% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Middle Schools in the ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION School District

488^th of 609ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION 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	26.8	541 of 752	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.7	512 of 743	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	34.1	476 of 748	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	29.6	512 of 745	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.6	494 of 745	33.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	19.4	594 of 716	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	40.1	450 of 713	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2014	8.7	640 of 717	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	4.6	662 of 704	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	7.7	621 of 677	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	3.6	650 of 684	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	11.7	597 of 677	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	7.7	602 of 664	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	5.2	598 of 640	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	3.4	601 of 631	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	2.6	584 of 615	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	2.8	566 of 599	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	2.5	557 of 588	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	1.2	561 of 574	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	57.2	111 of 359	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	65.0	83 of 352	76.4%	★★★★☆
2023	60.9	101 of 361	72.0%	★★★★☆
2022	56.8	112 of 356	68.5%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	29.0	260 of 343	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	49.6	117 of 320	63.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	43.8	143 of 288	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	37.3	156 of 270	42.2%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	26.2	535 of 728	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.5	532 of 717	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	37.6	418 of 720	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	27.6	519 of 726	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	35.7	387 of 608	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.0	354 of 589	39.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	49.2	256 of 587	56.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	41.3	329 of 591	44.3%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	41.1	351 of 613	42.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	55.7	194 of 584	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	55.7	177 of 568	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.5	264 of 549	51.9%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	29.1	504 of 726	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.1	442 of 719	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	29.4	499 of 718	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.8	466 of 730	36.2%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	47.7	212 of 507	58.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	38.1	286 of 510	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	28.0	380 of 505	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.6	383 of 535	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆

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)69th percentile+41 vs school

Special Education (2025)58th percentile+30 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)43rd percentile+15 vs school

Hispanic (2025)36th percentile+8 vs school

Male (2025)31st percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)27th percentile~ school

English Language Learner (2025)24th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Algebra I97%+51 vs state

English Language Arts45%-12 vs state

Mathematics12%-8 vs state

Science5%-14 vs state

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Schools Near Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation

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)		NJSLA Algebra II (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 7th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I End of Course	NJSLA Geometry 8th Grade	NJSLA Geometry End of Course	NJSLA Algebra II 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra II End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
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
Rosa Parks Community School	Public	3-7	369 Main Street	Orange	07050	Essex County	ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 677-4515	593	52	11.3	84.1%	2 (0.3%)	178 (30.0%)	402 (67.8%)	4 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.7%)	39.5	444^th of 752 public middle schools	41.0%		27.9	525^th of 743 public middle schools	29.3%	81	17.8		28.6	34.3	46.0	49.5	48.2		22.3	29.8	36.3	26.8	35.9									$8,884	$492	$8,392
Roosevelt Middle School	Public	7-8	36 Gilbert Pl	West Orange	07052	Essex County	West Orange Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(973) 669-5373	457	56	8.2	43.8%	84 (18.4%)	160 (35.0%)	173 (37.9%)	9 (2.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (6.3%)	62	260^th of 752 public middle schools	65.4%		54.9	308^th of 743 public middle schools	58.5%	48		27.1					76.6	64.2					40.5	17.6	97.6	60.0	78.1			72.7	73.5	$13,694		$13,694
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
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
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
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
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
Edison Middle School	Public	6	75 William St	West Orange	07052	Essex County	West Orange Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(973) 669-5360	477	53	8.9	42.6%	94 (19.7%)	137 (28.7%)	195 (40.9%)	12 (2.5%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	36 (7.5%)								(n/a)						64.9						48.4										$11,329		$11,329
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

Frequently Asked Questions about Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation

What is the racial makeup of Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation?

Students at Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation are 52% Hispanic, 47% African American.

What high school do graduates of Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation attend?

Students who attend Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation usually go on to attend Orange High School

How many students attend Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation?

In the 2024-25 school year, 397 students attended Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation.

Is Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation a good school?

Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation ranks 541^st of 752 New Jersey middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What district is Orange Preparatory Academy School of Inquiry and Innovation in?

ORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION School District

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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.