Empowerment Academy Charter School, Jersey City NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Empowerment Academy Charter School

Empowerment Academy Charter School is a K-9 charter school in Jersey City, New Jersey, operating as a single-school charter district. Located at 240 Ege Avenue, it serves a student body that reflects the city’s deep diversity. The school has been expanding its grade span and now enrolls through ninth grade, with plans to add one grade per year until it reaches a full K-12 model, a publicly reported shift from its original K-8 design. For families considering a charter option that could carry a child from kindergarten through high school graduation, that expansion is a central feature to weigh.

Academically, the school’s performance pattern is uneven across subjects and grades. On statewide assessments, reading and language arts outcomes are generally stronger than math, with notable bright spots: fourth and eighth grade ELA proficiency rates sit at a moderately high level, and the school’s overall proficiency index across tested grades and subjects places it above the midpoint among Hudson County districts. In mathematics, results are more mixed. Third and fourth graders show a solid share reaching proficiency, but from fifth through eighth grade the rates drop, with roughly a quarter to a third of students meeting the bar. Science results are the weakest area; in both fifth and eighth grade, a modest share of students score at the proficient level, and families should look into how science instruction and resources are structured.

The student body is economically diverse, with a substantial share qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Racially and ethnically, the school is majority Black and Hispanic, with a sizeable Asian population and a smaller share of white students. Data on students with disabilities and English learners were not reported, so a parent wanting to understand how the school serves those populations would need to ask directly. The school’s charter status means it operates with its own admissions lottery and governance, distinct from the Jersey City public school district.

Jersey City itself is a dense, ethnically diverse urban environment with over 40 languages spoken in a large portion of homes. Once a manufacturing and port city, its waterfront has transformed into a major financial hub nicknamed “Wall Street West.” The city remains a distribution and manufacturing center through Port Jersey. Neighborhoods range from high-rise Downtown to the more residential Heights and West Side, each with its own commercial corridors. Transit connections to Manhattan via PATH trains, NJ Transit buses, and ferries are robust, making the school’s location accessible to families across the city and beyond. The cost of housing has risen sharply, with home values and rents among the highest in the country, a factor for any family considering relocation.

Empowerment Academy is a regular public charter school, meaning it follows state standards but operates independently. The school’s expansion into high school grades is still underway, so the current high school program may not yet have the full course offerings of a mature secondary school. The available data does not include information on programs such as Advanced Placement, career pathways, or extracurriculars, nor on discipline or attendance patterns. A parent would want to visit and ask about these directly.

This school fits a family seeking a diverse, urban charter with a growing high school pathway in a transit-rich city. Given the mixed test results, especially in middle-grades math and science, parents of children with strong STEM interests may want to inquire about how the school addresses those subjects. The lack of reported special education and English learner data is a gap worth clarifying. For those committed to a single K-12 charter experience and comfortable with the trade-offs of a school still expanding, Empowerment Academy presents a distinctive option in Hudson County.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 35%

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

Grade 458%

School 58% · District 58%

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 537%

School 37% · District 37%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 627%

School 27% · District 27%

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 728%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 6 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 829%

School 29% · District 29%

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 347%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 465%

School 65% · District 65%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 550%

School 50% · District 50%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 644%

School 44% · District 44%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 742%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 859%

School 59% · District 59%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Science

Grade 520%

School 20% · District 20%

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 812%

School 12% · District 12%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

This schoolEmpowerment Academy Charter School, 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 3Lower-income41%Higher-income69%29 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income63%Higher-income70%7 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income44%Higher-income80%36 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income34%Higher-income83%49 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income37%Higher-income56%19 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income55%Higher-income68%12 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income30%Higher-income54%24 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income53%Higher-income70%17 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income33%Higher-income55%22 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income23%Higher-income44%21 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income22%Higher-income48%26 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income26%Higher-income36%9 pp gap