James F. Murray School, Jersey City NJ

Original Research by School Decision on James F. Murray School

James F. Murray School is a regular public school in Jersey City serving students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. It sits within the Jersey City Public Schools district, which operates several dozen schools across the city and recently launched a district-wide initiative called “Mission Forward” aimed at improving test scores, student behavior, and graduation readiness. As a PK-8 school, Murray does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report, and the academic picture comes entirely from state assessments in math, English language arts, and science for grades three through eight.

On those state assessments, performance is mixed and mostly soft. In math, proficiency rates fall below half in every tested grade, and in several grades they are well below that mark. The strongest math showing is in fifth grade, where a sizable share of students met the proficiency standard, but in sixth through eighth grades the rates drop notably, and in seventh and eighth grades they are very low. English language arts tells a somewhat different story. Proficiency rates in ELA are consistently higher than in math, with several grades above the midpoint on the scale and eighth grade reaching a relatively strong level. Fifth and seventh grades also show solid ELA results, while third and fourth grades are more modest but still better than the corresponding math numbers. Science is tested in fifth and eighth grades, and the results are weak, especially in eighth grade, where the proficiency rate is very low. A parent looking at these results would see a clear pattern: the school’s ELA instruction appears to be stronger than its math instruction, and science performance is an area of concern that may warrant a conversation with the school about curriculum and support.

The student body is diverse and economically disadvantaged. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic context of the neighborhood. Racially and ethnically, the school draws from Black, Hispanic, Asian, and White populations, along with smaller groups of Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and multiracial students. This mix gives the school a genuinely multicultural peer environment, which is characteristic of Jersey City as a whole. No data was available on the share of students with disabilities or English learners, which are important factors for families to consider when evaluating support services.

Jersey City itself is a dense, growing urban center. It has undergone a dramatic transformation from a manufacturing and port city into a major financial hub, with the waterfront nicknamed “Wall Street West.” The city is among the most ethnically diverse in the country, with many languages spoken and a large foreign-born population. Distinct neighborhoods such as Downtown, Journal Square, and the Heights give the city a varied residential texture. Housing values are high, and rents are among the steepest in the nation, reflecting sustained demand. The district has been responding to growth and development pressures while serving a student population that is predominantly minority and economically disadvantaged.

Compared to other districts in Hudson County, Murray’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits below the midpoint. That positioning aligns with the patterns seen in the individual subject results: the school faces real academic challenges, particularly in math and science, even as it posts more encouraging ELA numbers in the upper elementary and middle school grades. For a family weighing options, this school offers a diverse urban setting, a full PK-8 pathway so students do not have to change schools for middle school, and a district that has publicly acknowledged the need to raise performance. A parent would do well to visit, ask about math intervention and science instruction, and explore what supports are available for students who are behind grade level.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 327%

School 27% · District 46% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 428%

School 28% · District 38% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 546%

School 46% · District 36% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 623%

School 23% · District 28% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 713%

School 13% · District 32% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 813%

School 13% · District 9% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 47% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 448%

School 48% · District 49% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 44% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 647%

School 47% · District 47% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 753%

School 53% · District 49% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 859%

School 59% · District 45% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Science

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 88%

School 8% · District 12% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

This schoolJersey City Public Schools, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income29%Higher-income53%24 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income42%Higher-income75%33 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income59%Higher-income67%8 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income41%Higher-income72%31 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income52%Higher-income54%2 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income58%Higher-income62%4 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income27%Higher-income26%1 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income23%Higher-income47%24 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income47%Higher-income42%5 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income19%Higher-income39%20 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income9%Higher-income20%11 pp gap