Original Research by School Decision on Passaic Regional School
Passaic Regional School is an alternative school serving grades three through twelve, operated by the Office of Education of the New Jersey Department of Children and Families. It is not a traditional public school of the local Totowa district; rather, it is a state-run program for students whose needs are best met outside the mainstream classroom. The school is housed in Totowa, a small, suburban Passaic County borough with a modest population, a low municipal tax rate that has long been a point of civic pride, and a largely car-dependent layout. Totowa has a mix of single-family homes and commercial corridors along Totowa Road and Union Boulevard, but no concentrated downtown; its public library, municipal complex, and volunteer fire and first aid services form the civic core. The borough has seen gradual suburban growth over recent decades but remains compact, with limited transit access beyond Interstate 80 and Route 46.
Because Passaic Regional School is an alternative school, much of the standard data that families typically rely on to understand a school’s academic profile is absent here. No state assessment results are available for this school, which is common for alternative settings where students may follow individual educational plans or take alternative assessments not captured in the standard state reporting. Similarly, there is no reported graduation rate, even though the school serves twelfth grade; this gap likely reflects the nature of the population served, where typical cohort-based graduation metrics may not apply. A parent considering this school should understand that these measures are not meaningful in the same way they are for a district comprehensive school.
Enrollment data is reported as a very small figure, and all demographic and special population counts are similarly absent. This may be a result of the school’s small size and its status as a specialized program, or because the data is not submitted to the standard federal collection in the usual manner. The school does not report a Title I status, and there is no information on discipline, staffing, attendance, or course access. No program offerings are listed in the available data.
Because no proficiency, graduation, or attendance metrics are present, the school cannot be compared to other schools or districts in Passaic County. That is not unusual for an alternative school of this type, which operates outside the conventional accountability framework and serves students with distinct educational or behavioral needs.
In short, Passaic Regional School is a state-level alternative program for students in grades three through twelve, located in Totowa but governed by the Department of Children and Families. It does not generate the standard academic and demographic data that families use when evaluating traditional schools. Anyone seeking a placement here is likely already working with the district or a state agency that can explain the school’s approach, its therapeutic or instructional model, and what outcomes former students have achieved. For a family looking at a regular school down the street, this is not that kind of place. For a family whose child needs an alternative setting, this school is a specialized option, and the best next step is direct contact with the school or the department that runs it to get the details that are simply not available from public data sources.
See more original research from School Decision →