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Honest take: what's the hardest part about being a student at Washington School?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
534
Elementary
DISTRICT 488 · STATE 405
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NUTLEY PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 341188002390
Washington School
155 WASHINGTON AVE, NUTLEY, NJ 07110 · (973) 661-8887 · Essex County
GRADES PK–06ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL534 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.6:1
39 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.0:1 · STATE 11.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
23%
125 students
DISTRICT 16% · 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 | 15 | 3% |
| Kindergarten | 57 | 11% |
| Grade 1 | 80 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 13% |
| Grade 3 | 73 | 14% |
| Grade 4 | 83 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 80 | 15% |
| Grade 6 | 77 | 14% |
This year's kindergarten class (57) is 26% smaller than its 6th grade class (77).
Student demographics
68%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 64% · 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 Nutley Public School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
NJSLA 2024-25 . % Meeting or Exceeding ExpectationsEnglish Language Arts
69.2%
NJ avg 53.1% . +1.2pp since 2023
Math
59.4%
NJ avg 41.6% . +0.0pp since 2023
What this means: On the NJSLA, New Jersey's statewide test, about 69 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 59 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all New Jersey schools, those numbers are about 53 and 42. Reading and writing scores are up about 1 points since 2023, while math scores have held steady.
NJSLA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 69.2% | 59.4% |
| 2023-24 | 68.0% | 59.4% |
% 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
59.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
53.4%
based on NJ schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+6.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 60% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 53% 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 Washington School
Washington School's state test result (59.7% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington School this school | 534 | 23.4% | 59.7% |
| Fernbrook School RANDOLPH | 474 | 25.9% | 47.7% |
| Bertrand F. Gibbs Elementary School NEW MILFORD | 476 | 21.0% | 61.7% |
| Honiss Elementary\Middle School DUMONT | 624 | 19.7% | 55.9% |
| Adamsville Primary School Bridgewater | 461 | 25.2% | 54.9% |
| Grant Elementary School DUMONT | 432 | 17.4% | 63.0% |
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 Washington School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In New Jersey | In Essex County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 59.7% | #341 of 1,290 | #35 of 131 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 59.4% | #417 of 1,319 ▼ 28 | #43 of 141 ▼ 2 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 69.2% | #283 of 1,319 ▲ 9 | #38 of 141 ▼ 3 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 534 | #330 of 1,562 | #43 of 162 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.6:1 | #1,178 of 1,390 | #84 of 140 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 68.4% | #206 of 1,392 | #11 of 141 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 23.4% | #972 of 1,481 | #94 of 142 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -3.6% | #671 of 798 | #59 of 73 |
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
534
+11 (+2%) vs 2020
+47% since 1990-91, when it was 364
Student : Teacher
13.6:1
was 13.1:1
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 | 534 | 39.4 | 13.6:1 | 23% (125) |
| 2023-24 | 540 | 40.4 | 13.4:1 | 20% (110) |
| 2022-23 | 516 | 42.4 | 12.2:1 | 19% (99) |
| 2020-21 | 523 | 40 | 13.1:1 | 19% (99) |
| 2017-18 | 554 | 42.9 | 12.9:1 | 20% (112) |
| 2015-16 | 535 | 39 | 13.7:1 | 13% (69) |
| 2010-11 | 388 | 24 | 16.2:1 | 15% (57) |
| 2000-01 | 431 | 27 | 16.0:1 | 13% (58) |
| 1990-91 | 364 | 21 | 17.3:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Washington School.
Since 2017-18: students down 4% (554 to 534); teachers down 8% (42.9 to 39.4).
About Washington School
Washington School is a medium-sized elementary school in New Jersey, with an address in NUTLEY. Enrollment in 2024-25 was 534 students in pre-K through 6. The average for elementary schools in New Jersey is about 405 students, so this school is 32% above average.
Washington School is one school in Nutley Public School District, a system of 7 schools with 4,299 students.
At Washington School, the largest share of students is White, at 40%. The next largest groups are 36% Hispanic, 16% Asian, 4% multiracial, and 3% Black. The school's White share is 10 points above the 30% share among Essex County residents. The school's diversity index is 68%, meaning two students picked at random have a 68% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Teacher staffing is 39.4 full-time equivalents, or about 13.6 students per teacher. On average, elementary schools in New Jersey have 11.4:1, compared with 13.6:1 here. About 23% of students, or 125, qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. On average, public schools in Essex County report 54%.
In New Jersey, Washington School is in the middle band of BeatsExpectations: 59.7% actual against a predicted 53.4%.
County data help place the school in context: in Essex County, the median household income is $80,789, roughly 39% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 11%. There are 249 public schools in Essex County, enrolling about 145,473 students in all.
Nearest public school: Belleville PS5, about 0.8 miles away. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 45.8%; Washington School's is 59.7%, ranking 2nd of 8.
On the NCES locale scale, the school is Suburb: Large.
From 2020-21 to 2024-25, enrollment held near 534, starting from 523.
Community posts for Washington School can cover enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Essex County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
863,002
Census ACS
Median income
$80,789
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
39%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
249
145,473 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Nutley Public School District
- Nutley High SchoolHigh · 1,222 students
- John H. Walker Middle SchoolMiddle · 637 students
- Spring Garden SchoolElementary · 606 students
- Yantacaw SchoolElementary · 512 students
- Lincoln SchoolElementary · 446 students
- Radcliffe SchoolElementary · 342 students
Other schools in NUTLEY
- Nutley High SchoolHigh · 1,222 students
- John H. Walker Middle SchoolMiddle · 637 students
- Spring Garden SchoolElementary · 606 students
- Yantacaw SchoolElementary · 512 students
- Lincoln SchoolElementary · 446 students
- Radcliffe SchoolElementary · 342 students
Other Washington schools
22 other US public schools in 11 states are named Washington. Washington School is the 2nd largest of the 23.
- Washington SchoolMillburn, NJ · 363 students
- Washington SchoolLODI, NJ · 358 students
- Washington SchoolRUTHERFORD, NJ · 349 students
- Washington SchoolLYNDHURST, NJ · 162 students
- Washington SchoolSaddle Brook, NJ · 58 students
Nearby schools
- Belleville PS50.8 mi · 362
- Nutley High School0.8 mi · 1,222
- Roosevelt School0.8 mi · 295
- John H. Walker Middle School0.9 mi · 637
- Franklin School0.9 mi · 196
- Yantacaw School0.9 mi · 512
Frequently asked questions
About Washington SchoolHow large is Washington School?
Washington School enrolls approximately 534 students in grades PK-06.
Is Washington School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Washington School is an elementary school covering grades PK-06.
How many teachers does Washington School have?
Washington School employs 39 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.6:1.
What is the student diversity at Washington School?
Student demographics at Washington School are roughly 40% White, 36% Hispanic, 3% Black, 16% Asian, 4% Two or more.
Is Washington School public or private?
Washington School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Nutley Public School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.