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How has Merriam Avenue School changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
483
Elementary
DISTRICT 481 · STATE 405
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NEWTON PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 341140005388
Merriam Avenue School
81 MERRIAM AVENUE, NEWTON, NJ 07860 · (973) 383-7202 · Sussex County
GRADES PK–04ELEMENTARY31-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL483 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 27% of New Jersey public elementary schools
- CTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded New Jersey public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
10.5:1
46 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 9.9:1 · STATE 11.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
56%
269 students
DISTRICT 46% · STATE 41%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 60 | 12% |
| Kindergarten | 83 | 17% |
| Grade 1 | 80 | 17% |
| Grade 2 | 98 | 20% |
| Grade 3 | 82 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 80 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (83) is about the same size as its 4th grade class (80).
Student demographics
63%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 71% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within Newton Public School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
NJSLA 2024-25 . % Meeting or Exceeding ExpectationsEnglish Language Arts
31.9%
NJ avg 53.1% . -9.0pp since 2023
Math
28.4%
NJ avg 41.6% . -3.5pp since 2023
What this means: On the NJSLA, New Jersey's statewide test, about 32 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 28 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all New Jersey schools, those numbers are about 53 and 42. Reading and writing scores are down about 9 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 4 points.
NJSLA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 31.9% | 28.4% |
| 2023-24 | 40.9% | 31.9% |
% Meeting or Exceeding Expectations, all students and all tested grades.
Source: NJSLA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
33.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
35.7%
based on NJ schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-2.3pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 33% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 36% typical for New Jersey schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among New Jersey's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Merriam Avenue School
Merriam Avenue School's state test result (33.4% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merriam Avenue School this school | 483 | 55.7% | 33.4% |
| Washington Irving School #4 GARFIELD | 441 | 57.4% | 56.8% |
| Ridgeway Elementary School MANCHESTER | 476 | 57.4% | 33.1% |
| School #4 CLIFFSIDE PARK | 478 | 57.1% | 53.1% |
| Lucy N. Holman Elementary School Jackson | 547 | 58.7% | 27.4% |
| Manchester Township Elementary School MANCHESTER | 573 | 59.9% | 31.7% |
Matched among New Jersey elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Merriam Avenue School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In New Jersey | In Sussex County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.4% | #898 of 1,290 | #21 of 22 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 28.4% | #1,008 of 1,319 ▼ 118 | #22 of 22 ▼ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 31.9% | #1,077 of 1,319 ▼ 209 | #21 of 22 ▼ 3 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 483 | #444 of 1,562 | #5 of 27 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 10.5:1 | #486 of 1,390 | #15 of 25 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 62.8% | #385 of 1,392 | #1 of 25 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 55.7% | #513 of 1,481 | #1 of 26 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -0.4% | #792 of 798 | #8 of 8 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
483
+15 (+3%) vs 2020
+3% since 1990-91, when it was 471
Student : Teacher
10.5:1
was 11.1:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 483 | 46 | 10.5:1 | 56% (269) |
| 2023-24 | 524 | 46 | 11.4:1 | 50% (263) |
| 2022-23 | 458 | 45 | 10.2:1 | 39% (179) |
| 2020-21 | 468 | 42 | 11.1:1 | 46% (216) |
| 2017-18 | 485 | 42 | 11.6:1 | 49% (237) |
| 2015-16 | 475 | 42 | 11.3:1 | 55% (259) |
| 2010-11 | 490 | 31 | 15.8:1 | 41% (203) |
| 2000-01 | 492 | 33 | 14.9:1 | 33% (161) |
| 1990-91 | 471 | 29 | 16.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Merriam Avenue School.
Since 2017-18: students unchanged (485 to 483); teachers up 10% (42 to 46).
About Merriam Avenue School
Merriam Avenue School is one of the public schools in NEWTON, New Jersey. It is a medium-sized elementary school. The school had 483 students in pre-K through 4 in 2024-25.
Federal data list 3 schools in Newton Public School District, with 1,443 students enrolled.
The most common group at Merriam Avenue School is White students, at 43%. Enrollment also includes 42% Hispanic, 6% Black, 6% multiracial, and 2% Asian. The school's White share is 39 points below the 82% share among Sussex County residents. The school's diversity index is 63%, meaning two students picked at random have a 63% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
With 46 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25, the ratio at Merriam Avenue School was 10.5:1. This ratio sits 0.9 below the 11.4:1 average for elementary schools in New Jersey. A measure often used for student poverty, free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, stands at 56%. The average for public schools in Sussex County is 23%.
allk12 grades Merriam Avenue School a C. The grade compares the school only with New Jersey public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
When test results are adjusted for free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, Merriam Avenue School is 2.3 points below its prediction. Actual: 33.4%. Predicted: 35.7%.
According to the American Community Survey, in Sussex County, the median household income is $116,186, roughly 40% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 4%. There are 46 public schools in Sussex County, enrolling about 19,579 students in all.
The nearest public school is Newton High School, at about 0.5 miles. Around the school, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. On state test proficiency, Merriam Avenue School ranks 7th in a group of 8 nearby schools.
In the federal locale system, Merriam Avenue School is coded Town: Fringe, for schools in a town close to an urbanized area.
Compared with 2020-21, the school had 15 more students in 2024-25.
Topics for discussion here include school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Sussex County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
145,807
Census ACS
Median income
$116,186
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
40%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
46
19,579 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Newton Public School District
- Newton High SchoolHigh · 680 students
- Halsted Middle SchoolMiddle · 280 students
Other schools in NEWTON
- Kittatinny Regional High SchoolHigh · 733 students
- Newton High SchoolHigh · 680 students
- Marian E. McKeown Elementary SchoolElementary · 322 students
- Florence M. BurdElementary · 288 students
- Halsted Middle SchoolMiddle · 280 students
- Fredon Township SchoolElementary · 203 students
Nearby schools
- Newton High School0.5 mi · 680
- Halsted Middle School0.6 mi · 280
- Florence M. Burd2.6 mi · 288
- Long Pond School2.6 mi · 189
- Fredon Township School3.3 mi · 203
- Alpine Elementary School4.3 mi · 759
Frequently asked questions
About Merriam Avenue SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Merriam Avenue School?
Merriam Avenue School enrolls approximately 483 students in grades PK-04.
What age range does Merriam Avenue School serve?
Merriam Avenue School serves students from grade PK through grade 04.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Merriam Avenue School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Merriam Avenue School is approximately 10.5:1 (46 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Merriam Avenue School?
At Merriam Avenue School, the student body is approximately 43% White, 42% Hispanic, 6% Black, 2% Asian, 6% Two or more.
Is Merriam Avenue School public or private?
Merriam Avenue School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Newton Public School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.