Kipp: Cooper Norcross a New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation, Camden NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Kipp: Cooper Norcross a New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation

KIPP Cooper Norcross serves kindergarten through twelfth grade as a single K-12 public school operated by a nonprofit corporation in Camden. It is part of the KIPP network, and its enrollment is large for a single building, drawing students from across the city. The student body is almost entirely Black and Hispanic, and a very high share of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic conditions of the city itself.

Camden is a small, dense post-industrial city across the Delaware River from Philadelphia. Its manufacturing base collapsed in the mid-to-late twentieth century, and the economy has since shifted toward healthcare and education, anchored by Cooper University Hospital, Rutgers-Camden, and Rowan University. Poverty remains widespread, and median household income is well below state and national levels. The housing market reflects that: home values and rents are low relative to the broader region. The city has seen ongoing waterfront redevelopment, including corporate relocations and a new park on a former prison site, but the population has continued to decline slightly. For families in Camden, this school is one of several options within the KIPP Cooper Norcross network, which added a new K-5 campus in 2022.

On state assessments, proficiency rates across math and English language arts fall in a range that is lower than the midpoint among Camden County districts. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or above varies by grade but generally sits below one-third. In ELA, the pattern is similar, with fourth and sixth grades showing slightly higher rates and fifth grade a weaker result. Science proficiency is very low at both the fifth and eighth grade levels. A parent considering this school may want to ask the school directly about the strategies it uses to address these results, especially in science, and about what academic support looks like in the middle and upper grades.

The school runs through twelfth grade, but a four-year graduation rate was not reported in the data, so we cannot characterize how many students complete high school. This gap may reflect the school’s reporting or the data source, but a parent should confirm the graduation rate with the school or the state.

The school environment data, such as discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, and staffing ratios, were not available. These are relevant dimensions of a school’s daily life, especially for a K-12 campus serving a high-poverty population, and a family may want to discuss them during a visit. The neighborhood around the school is urban and walkable in parts, with the downtown institutional core nearby, but walkability varies by block.

For a Camden resident, this school offers a K-12 pathway within a single building and a recognized national network. The academic profile, as measured by state tests, is below the county average, and the science scores are particularly low. A family looking for a school with a strong track record of college readiness or advanced coursework may want to ask about the high school program, dual enrollment opportunities, and what supports are in place to move students toward proficiency.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 330%

School 30% · District 30%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 440%

School 40% · District 40%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 18%

▼ 24 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 619%

School 19% · District 19%

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 724%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 28%

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 321%

School 21% · District 21%

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 37 pts below state median · ▼ 36 pts below county median

Grade 634%

School 34% · District 34%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 732%

School 32% · District 32%

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 36%

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Science

Grade 55%

School 5% · District 5%

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 83%

School 3% · District 3%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

This schoolKIPP: Cooper Norcross A New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 4Lower-income32%Higher-income43%11 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income17%Higher-income8%9 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income36%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income35%Higher-income42%7 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income40%Higher-income36%4 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income19%Higher-income8%11 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income19%Higher-income27%8 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income29%Higher-income17%12 pp gap