The top reported proficiency rate is 35% in Math. The lowest is 26% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Lincoln Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School is a regular public school in Harrison, New Jersey, serving only second and third grade. It belongs to Harrison Public Schools, a district that has grown quickly in recent years, expanding from four to five schools and adding an intermediate grade level building. For a family looking at this school, the first thing to understand is its narrow grade band – children attend here for just two years before moving on to another school in the district.
The student body is moderate in size and overwhelmingly Hispanic, with smaller shares of Asian, White, and Black students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of economic disadvantage that is common in this community. The school sits in the heart of Harrison, a dense, formerly industrial Hudson County town that is undergoing a rapid transformation. Once a manufacturing hub known as "the beehive of industry," Harrison today is redeveloping its waterfront with mixed-use, transit-oriented construction. The population has grown sharply, and housing costs – both for buying and renting – are high relative to national norms. The town is compact and walkable, anchored by the Harrison PATH station and a major soccer stadium, and much of daily life is shaped by its small footprint and transit connections.
State testing data is available for third grade, the only tested grade in this building. In both math and English language arts, the share of students scoring at the proficient level fell in the bottom quarter among districts in Hudson County. This is a softer academic profile than many surrounding schools post. A parent may want to ask the school or district about the specific supports in place for early literacy and math, and how children who need additional help are identified and served. Because the school covers only two grades, there are no graduation rates, chronic absenteeism figures, or program offerings like AP or career pathways to consider. Staffing, discipline, and attendance information were not available in the data reviewed.
The district's growth is a notable factor for families. Harrison Public Schools has added an intermediate school, which suggests that the grade configuration children experience may shift as they move up. For a child starting second or third grade at Lincoln, the next step will be to a different building, so it makes sense to look at the full sequence of schools in the district and how they connect academically.
Lincoln Elementary offers a picture of a school in a town that is changing fast. The student population is diverse and largely low-income, the setting is urban and transit-rich, and the academic results on the state assessments are modest relative to the county. Families considering this school should weigh those results alongside the district's recent expansion and the reality that children will be here for only a short stretch of their elementary years.
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