The top reported proficiency rate is 57% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Memorial School
Memorial School serves students from preschool through third grade in the Emerson Public School District, a small Bergen County system. Because the school covers only the earliest elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and state testing data is limited to the one tested grade the school serves. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and the data did not indicate whether it receives Title I funding.
The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic constituency and smaller shares of Asian students and students of two or more races. The share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch is low, which aligns with the surrounding community’s economic profile. The data did not include counts of students with IEPs or English learners, so a parent wanting to know about special education and language support services would need to ask the school directly.
On the state’s NJSLA assessments for third grade, about half of students scored at the proficient or above level in both math and English language arts. That places the school’s overall proficiency below the midpoint among districts in Bergen County. Because the school tests only one grade, these results offer a snapshot rather than a full picture of academic performance across the elementary years. A parent may want to look into this further with the school to understand how early-grade instruction builds toward later outcomes.
Memorial School is one of three schools in the Emerson district. Students move on to Patrick M. Villano Elementary School for grades 3 through 6 and then to Emerson Junior-Senior High School for grades 7 through 12. The schools are distributed across the borough rather than clustered on a single campus, and the downtown commercial area along Kinderkamack Road, anchored by the train station, forms the civic core.
The school environment data did not include discipline rates, course access, staffing ratios, or attendance figures. The civil rights data was also absent. A parent interested in class sizes, teacher qualifications, or the school’s approach to behavior and support would need to gather that information directly.
Emerson is a primarily residential borough in the Pascack Valley, suburban to New York City. It brands itself “The Family Town” and has a compact central business district along Kinderkamack Road with shops and eateries. The train station provides NJ Transit service on the Pascack Valley Line to Hoboken with connections to New York City, and bus service is also available. Parks include Emerson Woods, a preserved natural area, along with several smaller neighborhood parks. The population has been relatively stable with a slight recent decline, and the borough has focused on improving its central business district rather than pursuing large-scale residential development. The housing market in the area carries a price well above the national benchmark, and the typical home value in the community’s ZIP code has risen in the past year. The school itself sits on Haines Avenue within the residential fabric.
No recent district-level changes that would clearly affect parents were found in available sources. The district brief noted a long-range facilities plan amendment but did not confirm specific parent-relevant changes. A parent considering Memorial School should evaluate it for what it is: a small early-elementary school in a stable, commuter-oriented suburb, serving the youngest students in a district where the next school and the secondary school lie ahead. The academic picture is based on a single tested grade, and the school’s proficiency rates sit below the county midpoint. The surrounding community is well-served by transit and parks, and the housing market reflects the area’s desirability and proximity to the New York metro area.
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