The top reported proficiency rate is 42% in English language arts. The lowest is 19% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Veterans Memorial Elementary School
Veterans Memorial Elementary School is a regular public school in Brick Township, Ocean County, serving kindergarten through fifth grade. It is one of a dozen schools in the Brick Township Public School District, a suburban system spread across a sprawling residential municipality on the Jersey Shore. The school’s enrollment sits in the middle range for an elementary school of this grade band, with a student body that draws from the surrounding neighborhoods.
The student population is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic minority and a smaller but notable Black cohort. More than two in five students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a meaningful share and gives a sense of the economic mix families will find here. Data on students with individualized education plans and English learners was not available in the source materials, so a parent who needs information on special education services or language support would want to follow up directly with the school.
State test results for 2024-25 offer a mixed picture. In English language arts, the school’s proficiency rates fall in a band that might be described as around the middle on the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment, with the highest performance in third grade and somewhat lower figures in fourth and fifth. Math results show a similar pattern, with third graders posting the strongest results and fourth and fifth graders turning in lower rates. Science, which is tested only in fifth grade, shows a low proficiency rate. When compared to other districts in Ocean County, the school’s overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades sits below the midpoint of the field. A parent looking at these numbers will want to consider whether the school’s academic profile aligns with their expectations, and may wish to discuss with the principal how the school addresses areas where students are struggling.
Brick Township itself is a car-dependent suburban community without a traditional downtown. The township grew rapidly from the 1950s through the 1980s, and its residential neighborhoods are spread across a wide area, with commercial activity clustered along major highways. There is no pedestrian-oriented main street. The school is located on Hendrickson Avenue, in a part of town that is primarily residential. The district’s housing market reflects typical Ocean County patterns: home values and rents have been rising in the area, and the school’s zip code shows a home value that is above the national benchmark but below the statewide average. The local market has been active, with a moderate supply of listings and a median days-on-market that suggests homes are not lingering. For families purchasing a home, property taxes are the dominant funding source for the district, so the tax burden is a factor in the cost of living.
The district has not undergone any major recent changes that were publicly reported in the materials reviewed. Enrollment has been stable, and the district’s budget relies heavily on local revenue. The school itself has not returned any information about program offerings, staffing levels, or discipline incidents, so the available picture is limited to test results and demographics. Parents who want to know about enrichment activities, class sizes, or school climate will need to get that from a school visit or from talking to current families.
Given what is available, Veterans Memorial Elementary fits a family looking for a conventional public elementary school in a suburban Shore community, with a diverse-by-income student body and academic results that are solid in early elementary but weaker by fourth and fifth grade, especially in math and science. The test data suggests that the school’s strongest showing is in third-grade reading, and that performance declines in the upper grades. A family considering this school should probe how the school supports students who are not meeting proficiency benchmarks and what interventions are in place for the grades where results are lower. The lack of special education and English learner data is a gap that a parent with a child who has an IEP or is learning English will want to fill before making a decision.
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