Delia Bolden Elementary School

Delia Bolden Elementary School is a primary school of moderately sized scale in MAPLEWOOD, New Jersey, one of the schools within South Orange-Maplewood School District, educateing 518 students in grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 405 students per school, that is 28% bigger than typical.

Across the 10 schools in South Orange-Maplewood School District (6,728 students total), Delia Bolden Elementary School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On the student-mix side, Delia Bolden Elementary School lists that 56% of the student body identifies as White. The remainder comes out to 15% Black, 15% multiracial, 10% Hispanic, 2% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 30% White, putting the school's mix considerably more White than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 41 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.7:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 11.4:1, putting Delia Bolden Elementary School higher than the state norm the norm. An estimated 8% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. By comparison, Essex County runs at roughly 54%, so the school's eligibility rate is lower than the surrounding baseline.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Delia Bolden Elementary School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 61.5%; this one delivers 64.5%.

Across the wider county, census data for Essex County shows median household earnings sit near $80,789, roughly 39% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Delia Bolden Elementary School is one of 249 public schools in Essex County (combined enrollment of about 145,473 students).

Nearest neighbor: Maplewood Middle School, around 0.4 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Delia Bolden Elementary School at 3rd of 9; the average score across the group is 57.8%.

Delia Bolden Elementary School operates from a bedroom-community location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count remained close to its prior level: 530 students in 2018 compared to 518 in 2025. The Black share of enrollment decreased from 23% to 15% over that span. Class-load math has rose: from 11.6:1 in 2018 to 12.7:1 in 2025.

On the community side, the feed for Delia Bolden Elementary School typically covers enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.