Chaplain Charles Watters School

Set in JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, Chaplain Charles Watters School is a reasonably sized K-5 school, one of the schools within Jersey City Public Schools. It hosts 586 students across grades pre-K through 8. That puts it 45% bigger than the typical public school in New Jersey, which averages around 405 students.

Jersey City Public Schools runs 39 schools in total, collectively educating 24,151 students. Chaplain Charles Watters School is one of those campuses.

On demographics, Chaplain Charles Watters School logs that the most-represented group is Black (42%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest is composed of 31% Hispanic, 15% White, 8% Asian, 3% multiracial. That is considerably more Black than the county at large, where the share is closer to 12%.

In terms of school funding signals, The school lists 52 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 11.4:1. The state averages about 11.4:1, putting this campus right in line with peers. Around 84% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Hudson County runs at roughly 68%, so the school's eligibility rate is above the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, Chaplain Charles Watters School tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 20.3% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 12.7%.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Hudson County) records that median household earnings sit near $91,795, about 49% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 11%. Across Hudson County's 130 public schools (combined enrollment of about 86,216 students), Chaplain Charles Watters School is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is Empowerment Academy Charter School, roughly 0.1 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Chaplain Charles Watters School ranks 7th on composite proficiency, beneath the local average of 30.5%.

The school occupies a downtown site.

Five-year trend. Chaplain Charles Watters School's enrollment has declined 24% since 2018, when it stood at 769 (now 586). Class-load math has pulled in: from 13.5:1 in 2018 to 11.4:1 in 2025.

On allk12, posts here usually surface around science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.