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Coming soon: We're expecting this year's test scores from the New Jersey Department of Education any day now — new rankings will be posted the moment they're released!

Coming soon: This year's test scores are expected from the New Jersey Department of Education any day now — new rankings will follow the moment they're released!

Maxson Middle School

Public Grades 6-8

678^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 752 New Jersey Middle Schools

Better than 10% of New Jersey middle schools

Summary

Maxson Middle School is a public middle school located in Plainfield, New Jersey, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 798 students. The school is part of the Plainfield Public School District, which is ranked 564 out of 609 districts in New Jersey and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Maxson Middle School consistently ranks in the bottom quartile of New Jersey middle schools, with significantly lower academic performance compared to the state and district averages across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2024-2025, only 27.9% of 6th graders, 24.2% of 7th graders, and 17.6% of 8th graders were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to the state averages of 56.1%, 57%, and 57.1%, respectively. The school's performance is particularly concerning for certain student subgroups, such as African American, Hispanic, English Language Learners, and students with disabilities.

Compared to nearby schools, such as South Plainfield Middle School and Malcolm E. Nettingham Middle School, Maxson Middle School's academic outcomes are significantly lower, despite having higher per-student spending. The school also experiences high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 14.9% to 32.9% over the past few years, significantly higher than the state average.

721

Students ?

9.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,025

Per pupil spending ?

76.7%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

920 E Seventh St
Plainfield, NJ 07062-1854

(908) 731-4310

District: Plainfield Public School District

Students who attend Maxson Middle School usually attend:

High:	Plainfield Academy For The Arts & Advanced Studies
	Plainfield High School

Feeder schools for Maxson Middle School:

Elementary:	Dewitt D. Barlow Elementary School
	Emerson Community School
	Evergreen Elementary School
	Frederic W. Cook Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

83.4%

African American:

14.7%

White:

0.8%

See top rated New Jersey middle schools

Compare Maxson Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 9th percentile in 2014 → 10th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 9 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the New Jersey average (17% vs 43% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (24% vs 14% New Jersey)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school17%

District avg17%

New Jersey avg43%

678^th of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Bottom 10%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

From bottom 13% (2015) to bottom 10% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

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

564^th of 609Plainfield 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	12.7	678 of 752	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.3	683 of 743	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.8	690 of 748	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.5	666 of 745	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	9.8	674 of 745	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.4	641 of 716	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	13.6	616 of 712	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	16.0	609 of 713	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	14.0	621 of 713	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	6.2	653 of 717	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	4.7	661 of 704	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	3.5	647 of 677	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	7.4	627 of 684	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	5.9	632 of 677	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	9.4	593 of 664	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	8.4	580 of 640	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	4.4	591 of 631	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	7.3	556 of 615	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	11.0	530 of 599	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	21.4	483 of 588	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	5.6	519 of 574	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	29.6	259 of 359	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	36.2	217 of 352	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.9	264 of 361	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.6	266 of 356	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.2	270 of 326	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	34.5	219 of 326	32.8%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	29.1	259 of 343	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	31.1	229 of 320	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.2	221 of 288	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.9	202 of 270	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.6	151 of 227	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.6	128 of 202	36.6%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	12.9	658 of 728	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.0	656 of 717	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.1	670 of 720	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.8	658 of 726	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.6	628 of 703	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.7	614 of 680	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	18.5	526 of 608	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.3	525 of 589	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.9	525 of 587	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.8	517 of 591	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	14.6	472 of 524	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.9	440 of 504	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	22.8	523 of 613	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.7	472 of 584	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.8	452 of 568	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.7	417 of 549	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.1	449 of 541	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.6	408 of 522	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	13.0	666 of 726	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.6	649 of 719	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.5	641 of 718	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.4	624 of 730	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	9.5	648 of 697	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.7	598 of 675	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	24.6	409 of 507	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.5	401 of 510	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.5	390 of 505	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.8	449 of 535	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.4	422 of 492	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.6	330 of 471	29.9%	★★☆☆☆

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)28th percentile+18 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)24th percentile+15 vs school

Special Education (2025)19th percentile+9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)15th percentile+5 vs school

Hispanic (2025)13th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2025)10th percentile~ school

Male (2025)8th percentile~ school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Algebra I73%+28 vs state

English Language Arts23%-33 vs state

Mathematics10%-24 vs state

Science3%-16 vs state

★

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Schools Near Maxson 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)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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 8th Grade	NJSLA Algebra I End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Maxson Middle School	Public	6-8	920 E Seventh St	Plainfield	07062	Union County	Plainfield Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 731-4310	721	78	9.2	76.7%	6 (0.8%)	106 (14.7%)	601 (83.4%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	12.7	678^th of 752 public middle schools	9.8%		12.3	683^rd of 743 public middle schools	8.1%	5		2.6		27.9	24.2	17.6		11.7	14.2	4.0	73.1	73.1	$24,025	$780	$23,245
Somerset School	Public	5-6	303 Somerset Street	North Plainfield	07060	Somerset County	North Plainfield School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 769-6080	485	51	9.4	82.1%	26 (5.4%)	80 (16.5%)	364 (75.1%)	8 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.4%)								(n/a)	10.9		26.9	32.7			21.2	17.2					$20,745	$762	$19,983
Terrill Middle School	Public	5-8	1301 Terrill Road	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(908) 322-5215	822	75	11.0	1.9%	527 (64.1%)	40 (4.9%)	90 (10.9%)	115 (14.0%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (5.8%)	82.1	107^th of 752 public middle schools	85.8%		73.3	172^nd of 743 public middle schools	76.9%	65	48.3	37.7	73.2	74.0	74.9	89.7	66.1	64.0	70.6	20.0	71.9	71.9	$18,337	$361	$17,976
Malcolm E Nettingham Middle School	Public	5-8	580 Park Avenue	Scotch Plains	07076	Union County	Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 322-4445	913	84	10.9	7.8%	477 (52.2%)	79 (8.7%)	188 (20.6%)	116 (12.7%)	4 (0.4%)	2 (0.2%)	47 (5.1%)	70.1	198^th of 752 public middle schools	73.7%		74.1	167^th of 743 public middle schools	77.5%	31	44.0	24.4	68.7	75.8	76.5	70.6	61.6	47.4	65.0	0.0	56.9	56.9	$18,224	$358	$17,866
Hubbard Middle School	Public	6-8	661 W Eighth St	Plainfield	07060	Union County	Plainfield Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 731-4320	737	66	11.1	86.4%	4 (0.5%)	81 (11.0%)	647 (87.8%)	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	14.8	659^th of 752 public middle schools	12.4%		12.5	679^th of 743 public middle schools	8.6%	20		1.7		23.3	19.6	20.5		13.2	14.5	15.1	95.5	95.5	$23,323	$777	$22,546
North Plainfield Middle School	Public	7-8	34 Wilson Avenue	North Plainfield	07060	Somerset County	North Plainfield School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 769-6040	538	52	10.3	78.6%	37 (6.9%)	80 (14.9%)	399 (74.2%)	10 (1.9%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (1.9%)	18.7	620^th of 752 public middle schools	17.6%		19.2	608^th of 743 public middle schools	18.2%	12		4.1			36.8	28.6			12.3	10.6	83.3	83.3	$20,259	$646	$19,613
Grant Elementary School	Public	5-6	305 Cromwell Place	South Plainfield	07080	Middlesex County	South Plainfield School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 754-4620	568	52	11.0	35.4%	200 (35.2%)	60 (10.6%)	177 (31.2%)	104 (18.3%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	23 (4.0%)								(n/a)	22.2		48.7	42.6			40.0	38.5					$13,353	$259	$13,094
South Plainfield Middle School	Public	7-8	2201 Plainfield Avenue	South Plainfield	07080	Middlesex County	South Plainfield School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 754-4620	553	52	10.6	37.1%	182 (32.9%)	61 (11.0%)	203 (36.7%)	87 (15.7%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	17 (3.1%)	52.8	326^th of 752 public middle schools	56.6%		51.6	330^th of 743 public middle schools	55.6%	4		16.1			55.2	54.8			41.3	26.0	96.2	96.2	$19,956	$287	$19,669
Valley View School	Public	5-8	50 Valley View Road	Watchung	07069	Somerset County	Watchung Borough School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(908) 755-4422	276	30	9.2	2.2%	133 (48.2%)	24 (8.7%)	43 (15.6%)	57 (20.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (6.9%)	84.6	87^th of 752 public middle schools	88.4%		85.3	79^th of 743 public middle schools	89.4%	8	56.1	37.9	72.0	73.5	75.8	72.7	70.8	69.6	60.4	40.5	100.0	100.0	$20,961	$217	$20,744
Roosevelt Intermediate School	Public	6-8	301 Clark Street	Westfield	07090	Union County	Westfield Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(908) 789-4560	638	62	10.2	0.9%	509 (79.8%)	8 (1.3%)	46 (7.2%)	44 (6.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	30 (4.7%)	83.9	93^rd of 752 public middle schools	87.6%		89.2	48^th of 743 public middle schools	93.5%	45		31.2		77.1	70.3	78.0		70.6	75.9	31.7	90.1	90.1	$15,986	$53	$15,933

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