Mckinley Community School, New Brunswick NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Mckinley Community School

Mckinley Community School serves students in prekindergarten through eighth grade as part of the New Brunswick School District. The school sits in a densely populated urban setting, a small city that functions as a major regional hub for Central Jersey. New Brunswick combines a large university campus, corporate and pharmaceutical headquarters, and two major hospital systems, giving the city an economy anchored in healthcare and higher education. The downtown has a growing skyline, a major NJ Transit rail stop, and a cluster of performing arts venues. The city is ethnically diverse, with large Hispanic and Black communities, a long-established Hungarian presence, and growing Asian communities. Housing in the area commands a moderate price relative to the state median, and the rental market is active. The district itself is an SDA district, meaning the state covers the cost of school building and renovation projects, so major capital improvements do not require local bonding.

The student body at Mckinley Community School is large for a PK-8 public school. A substantial majority of students come from Hispanic backgrounds, with Black students representing the next largest group. White students, Asian students, and students of two or more races each make up very small shares. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a population with significant economic need. Data on students with individualized education plans and English learners was not available. The school is a regular public school, not a charter.

On state assessments, proficiency rates are low across tested grades and subjects when measured against the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment standards. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or above falls consistently in the lower range from third grade through eighth grade, with a notable decline in the upper elementary and middle school grades. In English language arts, the pattern is similar, with a modestly higher share of students reaching proficiency in the early elementary grades and lower shares in the middle grades. In science, proficiency rates are very low in both fifth grade and eighth grade. The school’s overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile when compared to all other school districts in Middlesex County, a set that includes many districts with higher overall attainment. A parent considering this school should look into the specific academic supports available and the school’s approach to accelerating student progress, particularly in the upper grades.

The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report. Data on chronic absenteeism was not available. Information on program offerings, such as advanced coursework, arts, or career pathways, was not provided in the data reviewed. The district brief notes that the larger New Brunswick School District operates a high school with career institutes and preparatory academies and a P-TECH program that allows selected students to earn an associate degree alongside a diploma, but those offerings sit at the high school level and are not part of the program at Mckinley Community School.

Mckinley Community School is a neighborhood school in a diverse, urban district with strong institutional anchors in healthcare and higher education. The school serves a student population with high economic need, and its state assessment results are low relative to county peers. A family considering this school would want to learn directly from the school about the specific academic interventions, support services, and enrichment offerings in place, and what the transition looks like for students entering the district’s themed high school programs.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 18% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 437%

School 37% · District 23% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 521%

School 21% · District 16% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

Grade 614%

School 14% · District 10% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 715%

School 15% · District 15%

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

Grade 87%

School 7% · District 7%

▼ 10 pts below state median · even with county median

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 19% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 30% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 29% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

Grade 621%

School 21% · District 28% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 33 pts below state median · ▼ 29 pts below county median

Grade 719%

School 19% · District 27% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 38 pts below state median · ▼ 32 pts below county median

Grade 824%

School 24% · District 35% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 34 pts below state median · ▼ 30 pts below county median

Science

Grade 58%

School 8% · District 9% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 80%

School 0% · District 2% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

This schoolNew Brunswick School District, 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.