The top reported proficiency rate is 54% in English language arts. The lowest is 19% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Highland Park Middle School
Highland Park Middle School serves the middle grades of a small, compact borough school district in central New Jersey. The school sits within a community that is densely populated and largely residential, a place where the commercial streets are known for independent shops that have lasted for generations and where the town’s character has long been shaped by its proximity to Rutgers University and major employers just across the Raritan River. The district, which covers the entire borough, passed a capital improvements referendum in 2024 for building upgrades such as roof replacements and HVAC work, and it adopted a new literacy curriculum aligned with the science of reading the year prior. For the 2024-2025 budget, the board approved expanded STEM programs and mental health support services with a tax levy increase.
The student body at Highland Park Middle School reflects the diversity of the borough. White students and Hispanic students each make up roughly a third of the enrollment, Asian students account for about a sixth, and Black students and students of two or more races each make up roughly a tenth. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school is neither a charter nor a magnet, and data on Title I status, special education identification, English learner classification, and chronic absenteeism were not available in the materials reviewed.
State testing results paint a mixed picture that parents will want to examine closely. In English language arts, proficiency rates across grades six through eight sit near the midpoint among public schools statewide, with roughly half of students meeting the state’s college-and-career-ready standard. Grade eight posts the highest ELA outcome of the three grades. In mathematics, the picture is markedly different. Proficiency rates decline steadily from grade six to grade eight, and the eighth-grade math result is very low. Science testing, administered only in grade eight, also shows a low proficiency rate. When the school’s overall performance across tested subjects and grades is placed against other schools in districts across Middlesex County, it lands below the midpoint of that large cohort. The gap between a solid ELA showing and very weak math and science results is the central fact a family should take away from this data. A parent moving to the area for a middle schooler should ask the school directly about how it supports math instruction, what interventions are in place for students who arrive below grade level, and whether the curriculum for eighth-grade math aligns with the expectations of the state assessment.
The school environment and program data are thin. No information on course offerings, staffing ratios, class sizes, or discipline rates was available in the data provided. The school’s location on Wayne Street is within the borough’s neighborhood grid, not on a separate campus, which is consistent with how the district’s four schools are embedded in the residential fabric. The absence of staffing and course-access data is a gap a parent would want to fill through a school visit or call.
The housing market in the school’s zip code is expensive, and it has been rising. Home values are well above the national median, and the area has seen moderate annual appreciation. Rents are also high, and for a typical household, renting would be more affordable than buying at current mortgage rates. The county’s housing market remains competitive, with active listings growing but still limited relative to demand.
This is a middle school where a student who is strong in reading and writing will likely find a peer group performing at a solid level, but where math and science outcomes are clearly a weakness relative to other middle schools in the county. A family whose child needs robust math support or who places a premium on strong STEM foundations in middle school should investigate further before making a decision based on this school alone. A family whose child is an English language arts-oriented learner may find the school a reasonable fit, but the overall proficiency index suggests the school has room to grow in closing the gap between subjects. The community itself is walkable, historically minded, and tightly knit, and the district has made recent investments in its buildings and instructional approach, which point to a system aware of its challenges and acting on them.
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