Summary:
Zip code 08731 has two schools in the Lacey Township School District, serving grades 1–5 and 6–8: Forked River Elementary School (479 students) and Lacey Township Middle School (819 students). Across their grade-level ELA and math results, average gaps were 3 points below state results in ELA and 2 points below in math, with substantial differences by grade. The clearest shared weakness is science: Forked River was 11 points below the state in Grade 5, and Lacey was 5 points below in Grade 8.
Forked River stands out in Grade 3: ELA proficiency was 57% versus 48% statewide, and math was 52% versus 49%. Its Grade 4 math result was a notable low point, at 36% versus 47% statewide, while its Grade 5 science result was 17% versus 27%. At Lacey, Grade 6 math was 44% versus 40% statewide, but Grade 7 and 8 math were below state results. Advanced-course results were a high point: end-of-course Algebra I was 86% versus 40% statewide, and Grade 8 Geometry was 95% versus 86%. Because the schools serve different grades, their raw scores do not support a direct school-to-school ranking.
Results improved overall, but not across the board: the average ELA and math gap across the schools moved from 6 points below state results in 2024–2025 to 3 points below in 2025–2026. Forked River’s Grade 3 ELA rose 22 points, while Lacey’s math improved in all three grades; however, Lacey’s Grade 7 and 8 ELA fell 10 and 11 points, and Forked River’s science fell 6 points. SchoolDigger percentile rankings rose 8 points for each school from 2023–2024 to 2025–2026: 33 to 41 for Forked River and 43 to 51 for Lacey; Lacey’s rating rose from 2 to 3 stars, while Forked River stayed at 2. In 2024–2025, student-teacher ratios were similar (13.3 and 13.4), while free/reduced lunch eligible shares were 43% at Forked River and 33% at Lacey. Chronic absenteeism was 20% at both schools, compared with 14% statewide.
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