The top reported proficiency rate is 41% in Math. The lowest is 17% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Pine Grove Manor School
Pine Grove Manor School is a regular public elementary school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in Somerset, New Jersey, part of the Franklin Township Public School District. It is a neighborhood school located in a suburban census-designated place that lacks a traditional downtown core and is characterized by car-dependent residential subdivisions, strip malls, and office parks. The school itself draws from a community that is demographically diverse and economically mixed, though the school’s student body tilts heavily toward lower-income households.
Because Pine Grove Manor serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and state testing data is available only for the grades that are assessed: third through fifth. On the New Jersey Student Learning Assessments, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades falls in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Somerset County. Within the school, results vary by grade and subject. In third grade, more than half of students met proficiency in English language arts, while in fourth grade that share dropped to about one in five. Math proficiency in third grade was right around the halfway mark, then fell in fourth grade before rising again in fifth grade to a similar level as third. Science proficiency in fifth grade, the only tested science grade, was below one in five. These are the numbers that are available; the school’s participation rates in the assessments are not reported in the data we have, so it is not possible to confirm whether all students were tested.
The student population is moderate in size for an elementary school serving seven grade levels from prekindergarten through fifth. A large majority of students come from households that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Racially and ethnically, the student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a smaller Black share, a small White share, and a similarly small Asian share. Data on students with disabilities and English learners are not reported in the data provided, so a parent would want to ask the school directly about those populations and the supports available. The school does not have a charter or magnet designation, and its Title I status is not reported.
The community of Somerset sits within Franklin Township in Somerset County, an area that is broadly affluent by national standards, with county-level median household income among the highest in the country. However, the school’s own student body is not representative of that affluence; the high share of students qualifying for meal assistance suggests that Pine Grove Manor serves some of the township’s lower-income families. Housing in the area is expensive relative to national norms, both for purchase and rental, and the area has seen modest population growth. Major local employers include SHI International and Catalent, both headquartered in Somerset, as well as PIM Brands and Meda Pharmaceuticals, giving the area a stable employment base in technology, pharmaceuticals, and consumer goods.
The Franklin Township Public School District operates Pine Grove Manor as one of its elementary schools. No recent district-level changes—such as boundary adjustments, curriculum overhauls, or budget votes—are publicly reported in the data we have, so parents should check with the district for any coming shifts.
For a family considering Pine Grove Manor, the school offers a small, community-rooted elementary setting within a broader district that serves a large and varied population. The academic picture is mixed: some grade-level results are near the middle of the pack for the county, but overall performance sits below many area schools. The school’s student body is economically diverse in the sense that a large share of families are low income, while the surrounding township is generally affluent, meaning the peer environment may differ from what families see in some neighboring districts. A parent may want to look into what academic intervention and enrichment programs are available, since the test results show room for growth, particularly in fourth-grade literacy and fifth-grade science. The lack of reported data on special education and English learner populations is a gap worth exploring with the school directly.
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