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West Essex Middle School

Q: Is West Essex Middle School a good school?

West Essex Middle School ranks 138 th of 752 New Jersey middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 7-8

138^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 752 New Jersey Middle Schools

Better than 82% of New Jersey middle schools

Summary

West Essex Middle School is a public middle school located in North Caldwell, New Jersey, serving grades 7-8 with a total enrollment of 622 students. The school is part of the West Essex Regional School District, which is ranked 129 out of 609 districts in New Jersey and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

West Essex Middle School consistently performs above the state average in standardized test scores across various subjects and grade levels. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the school had 81.1% of 7th graders and 73.3% of 8th graders proficient or better in NJSLA/English Language Arts, compared to the state averages of 57% and 57.1%, respectively. The school also excels in the performance of specific student subgroups, ranking highly among New Jersey middle schools for Hispanic students (ranked 54th out of 608 in 2024-2025) and Special Education students (ranked 71st out of 507 in 2024-2025), both of which are rated 5 out of 5 stars by SchoolDigger.

Additionally, West Essex Middle School stands out in its Algebra I proficiency, with 95.5% of students proficient or better in the 2024-2025 school year, significantly higher than the state average of 72.7% for 8th graders. The school also has relatively low chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 2.8% to 4.1% in recent years, which is lower than the state average. While West Essex Middle School outperforms the state averages, some nearby schools, such as Renaissance Middle School at the Rand Building and Buzz Aldrin Middle School in the Montclair Public School District, also demonstrate strong academic performance and are ranked highly among New Jersey middle schools.

558

Students ?

9.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,372

Per pupil spending ?

4.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

65 West Greenbrook Rd
North Caldwell, NJ 07006

(973) 228-1200

District: West Essex Regional School District

Students who attend West Essex Middle School usually attend:

High:

West Essex High School

Feeder schools for West Essex Middle School:

Elementary:	Adlai E. Stevenson School
	Essex Fells Elementary School
	Grandview Elementary School
	Lester C Noecker
	More...
	Winston S. Churchill School

Racial breakdown:

White:

74.7%

Hispanic:

11.5%

Asian:

8.2%

See top rated New Jersey middle schools

Compare West Essex Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 88th percentile in 2014 → 82nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the New Jersey average (63% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 18% of New Jersey middle schools

✓Small classes — about 9 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 6 percentile points since 2014

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school63%

District avg57%

New Jersey avg41%

138^th of 752

New Jersey public middle schools ?

Top 18%▲ up 14 pts since 2015

From top 32% (2015) to top 18% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New Jersey Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

129^th of 609West Essex Regional 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	78.4	138 of 752	81.6%	★★★★☆
2024	81.6	109 of 743	85.3%	★★★★☆
2023	82.1	102 of 748	86.4%	★★★★☆
2022	74.4	160 of 745	78.5%	★★★★☆
2019	83.3	81 of 745	89.1%	★★★★☆
2018	84.1	76 of 716	89.4%	★★★★☆
2017	81.3	112 of 712	84.3%	★★★★☆
2016	78.2	120 of 713	83.2%	★★★★☆
2015	63.4	229 of 713	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2014	83.2	87 of 717	87.9%	★★★★☆
2013	81.4	114 of 704	83.8%	★★★★☆
2012	82.8	101 of 677	85.1%	★★★★☆
2011	83.2	89 of 684	87.0%	★★★★☆
2010	80.1	118 of 677	82.6%	★★★★☆
2009	77.5	141 of 664	78.8%	★★★★☆
2008	78.3	130 of 640	79.7%	★★★★☆
2007	80.2	101 of 631	84.0%	★★★★☆
2006	80.7	115 of 615	81.3%	★★★★☆
2005	76.1	171 of 599	71.5%	★★★★☆
2004	76.7	162 of 588	72.4%	★★★★☆
2003	80.1	117 of 574	79.6%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	64.7	83 of 204	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	53.3	101 of 200	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	57.2	94 of 201	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	55.7	99 of 200	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.2	74 of 199	62.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	73.1	46 of 200	77.0%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	81.3	116 of 728	84.1%	★★★★☆
2024	85.4	84 of 717	88.3%	★★★★☆
2023	77.9	142 of 720	80.3%	★★★★☆
2022	73.2	178 of 726	75.5%	★★★★☆
2019	85.1	79 of 703	88.8%	★★★★☆
2018	85.2	80 of 680	88.2%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	84.2	54 of 608	91.1%	★★★★★
2024	94.0	15 of 589	97.5%	★★★★★
2023	90.9	30 of 587	94.9%	★★★★★
2022	64.6	145 of 591	75.5%	★★★★☆
2019	81.8	49 of 524	90.6%	★★★★★
2018	77.6	75 of 504	85.1%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	65.7	138 of 613	77.5%	★★★★☆
2024	71.1	82 of 584	86.0%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	75.2	159 of 726	78.1%	★★★★☆
2024	82.5	113 of 719	84.3%	★★★★☆
2023	82.9	101 of 718	85.9%	★★★★☆
2022	76.8	144 of 730	80.3%	★★★★☆
2019	80.1	133 of 697	80.9%	★★★★☆
2018	83.3	101 of 675	85.0%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	74.1	71 of 507	86.0%	★★★★☆
2024	81.3	39 of 510	92.4%	★★★★★
2023	84.8	34 of 505	93.3%	★★★★★
2022	72.9	76 of 535	85.8%	★★★★☆
2019	81.2	54 of 492	89.0%	★★★★☆
2018	73.1	80 of 471	83.0%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New Jersey percentile	Rating
2025	64.8	145 of 502	71.1%	★★★★☆
2024	68.5	139 of 510	72.7%	★★★★☆
2023	71.6	118 of 509	76.8%	★★★★☆
2022	64.4	156 of 512	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	73.6	109 of 504	78.4%	★★★★☆
2018	76.4	97 of 497	80.5%	★★★★☆

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)

Hispanic (2025)91st percentile+9 vs school

Special Education (2025)86th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2025)84th percentile~ school

Male (2025)78th percentile-4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)77th percentile-4 vs school

White (2025)71st percentile-11 vs school

Asian (2025)59th percentile-22 vs school

By subject vs New Jersey (2024-2025) ?

Algebra I96%+50 vs state

English Language Arts77%+20 vs state

Mathematics47%+16 vs state

Science29%+10 vs state

★

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Schools Near West Essex Middle 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 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	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
West Essex Middle School	Public	7-8	65 West Greenbrook Rd	North Caldwell	07006	Essex County	West Essex Regional School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 228-1200	558	60	9.3	4.8%	417 (74.7%)	16 (2.9%)	64 (11.5%)	46 (8.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (2.7%)	78.4	138^th of 752 public middle schools	81.6%		81.6	109^th of 743 public middle schools	85.3%	29		29.4				81.1	73.3				64.1	21.3		95.5	95.5	$10,372	$71	$10,301
Gould/Mountain Elementary School	Public	4-6	132 Gould Ave	N Caldwell	07006	Essex County	North Caldwell School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 712-4400	279	42	6.7		212 (76.0%)	5 (1.8%)	20 (7.2%)	36 (12.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)								(n/a)	67.4		87.9	89.1	96.9			73.5	83.7	73.2						$10,455	$168	$10,287
Little Falls Township Public School # 1	Public	5-8	Little Falls School # 1	Little Falls	07424	Passaic County	Little Falls Township Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 256-1033	392	42	9.4	27.6%	236 (60.2%)	7 (1.8%)	117 (29.8%)	23 (5.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.3%)	78.6	137^th of 752 public middle schools	81.8%		86.6	69^th of 743 public middle schools	90.7%	68	42.0	10.9		70.0	75.6	81.2	75.3		73.0	68.3	64.8	42.5		89.5	89.5	$13,515	$313	$13,202
Grover Cleveland Middle School	Public	6-8	36 Academy Rd	Caldwell	07006	Essex County	Caldwell-West School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 228-9115	610	53	11.5	12.6%	471 (77.2%)	14 (2.3%)	95 (15.6%)	21 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	7 (1.1%)	75.7	152^nd of 752 public middle schools	79.8%		77.6	138^th of 743 public middle schools	81.4%	14		27.7			65.7	75.7	60.3			58.2	61.6	35.7		98.2	98.2	$10,655	$21	$10,634
Memorial Middle School	Public	5-8	500 Ridge Road	Cedar Grove	07009	Essex County	Cedar Grove Township School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(973) 239-2646	468	48	9.7	9.4%	355 (75.9%)	12 (2.6%)	58 (12.4%)	24 (5.1%)	1 (0.2%)	12 (2.6%)	6 (1.3%)	71.6	185^th of 752 public middle schools	75.4%		64.7	238^th of 743 public middle schools	68.0%	53	46.3	17.9		81.4	73.1	68.4	78.8		76.7	53.4	56.5	22.1		86.7	86.7	$8,390	$21	$8,369
Henry B. Whitehorne Middle School	Public	5-8	600 Bloomfield Ave	Verona	07044	Essex County	Verona Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(973) 571-6751	702	62	11.3	1.9%	584 (83.2%)	13 (1.9%)	53 (7.5%)	27 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	21 (3.0%)	81.8	112^th of 752 public middle schools	85.1%		72.5	177^th of 743 public middle schools	76.2%	65	48.9	31.2		70.9	70.3	82.7	70.0		67.0	58.8	72.0	32.2		95.1	95.1	$11,775	$136	$11,639
Memorial Middle School	Public	6-8	15 Memorial Drive	Woodland Park	07424	Passaic County	Woodland Park School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 317-7750	374	38	9.9	47.9%	164 (43.9%)	12 (3.2%)	181 (48.4%)	9 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	6 (1.6%)	45.3	399^th of 752 public middle schools	46.9%		43.2	395^th of 743 public middle schools	46.8%	4		11.3			51.2	57.8	54.8			27.5	32.7	25.9		100.0	100.0	$13,806	$614	$13,192
Washington Park School	Public	4-8	10 Crews Street	Totowa	07512	Passaic County	Totowa Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 956-0010	485	40	12.2	32.4%	231 (47.6%)	24 (4.9%)	205 (42.3%)	25 (5.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	57.8	291^st of 752 public middle schools	61.3%		59	283^rd of 743 public middle schools	61.9%	8	24.4	18.1	44.0	69.8	56.2	72.3	68.2	36.0	41.9	38.2	35.3	20.2		95.0	95.0	$11,100	$295	$10,805
Buzz Aldrin Middle School	Public	6-8	173 Bellevue Ave	Upper Montclair	07042	Essex County	Montclair Public School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 509-4220	618	63	9.7	17.2%	317 (51.3%)	90 (14.6%)	91 (14.7%)	45 (7.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	72 (11.7%)	70.5	196^th of 752 public middle schools	73.9%		71.4	185^th of 743 public middle schools	75.1%	11		24.0			75.7	69.6	72.5			62.9	59.3	7.1	100.0	52.1	57.6	$11,896	$170	$11,726
Lincoln Park Middle School	Public	5-8	90 Ryerson Road	Lincoln Park	07035	Morris County	Lincoln Park School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(973) 696-5520	368	31	11.9	24.5%	231 (62.8%)	3 (0.8%)	100 (27.2%)	28 (7.6%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.5%)	3 (0.8%)	84.9	84^th of 752 public middle schools	88.8%		88.7	53^rd of 743 public middle schools	92.9%	31	33.0	35.1		73.0	71.9	80.0	79.0		41.0	52.2	64.8	56.8		100.0	100.0	$9,325	$188	$9,137

Frequently Asked Questions about West Essex Middle School

Is West Essex Middle School a good school?

West Essex Middle School ranks 138^th of 752 New Jersey middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend West Essex Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 558 students attended West Essex Middle School.

What high school do graduates of West Essex Middle School attend?

Students who attend West Essex Middle School usually go on to attend West Essex High School

What is the racial makeup of West Essex Middle School?

Students at West Essex Middle School are 75% White, 11% Hispanic, 8% Asian, 3% African American, 3% Two or more races.

What district is West Essex Middle School in?

West Essex Regional School District

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Schools in North Caldwell, NJ

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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.