Cleveland Street Elementary School, Orange NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Cleveland Street Elementary School

Cleveland Street Elementary School serves students from prekindergarten through seventh grade in the city of Orange, a densely populated urban township in Essex County. The school is part of the Orange Board of Education School District, a district that has undergone a notable governance shift in recent years. Voters approved a transition from a mayor-appointed board to an elected board, with the first elected board taking office in a recent year, giving residents direct control over board membership. The district is also one of the former Abbott districts, now called SDA Districts, meaning the state covers all costs for school building and renovation projects through the New Jersey Schools Development Authority, a fact with lasting implications for facilities and capital improvements.

Cleveland Street Elementary School serves students from prekindergarten through seventh grade. The student body is composed almost entirely of Black and Hispanic students, with a very small number of students from other racial backgrounds. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic need in the school community.

State testing data from the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment provides a picture of academic performance at the school. In English language arts, proficiency rates vary by grade level. In the lower elementary grades, the share of students meeting the state's proficiency benchmark was below half, while in the upper elementary and middle school grades, the share was around half or slightly below. In mathematics, proficiency rates were lower across all tested grades, with the highest rate seen in seventh grade. In fifth-grade science, no students met the state's proficiency benchmark. When compared to other districts in Essex County, the school's overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the bottom quartile. A parent may want to look into this further with the school to understand the academic support and intervention programs available.

The school serves prekindergarten through seventh grade, so it does not have a graduation rate to report. Information on special education and English learner populations was not available in the data provided. The school's website and directory details confirm it is a regular public school, and it is not a charter or magnet school.

Orange itself is a densely populated urban township, part of the cluster of municipalities known as "The Oranges" in Essex County. The city has a mix of residential neighborhoods and commercial corridors, and portions of it are designated as an Urban Enterprise Zone, a program intended to encourage retail and commercial activity. The population has grown in recent decades. NJ Transit provides bus and rail service through the township, and Interstate 280 traverses the city. The East Branch of the Rahway River runs through Orange.

The district has undergone a notable governance change. Voters approved a transition from a Type I district, where the board is appointed by the mayor, to a Type II district with an elected board, with the first election held in a recent year. This shift gives residents direct control over board membership. The district is also one of the former Abbott districts, now called SDA Districts, meaning the state covers all costs for school building and renovation projects through the Schools Development Authority, a fact with lasting impact on facilities. The district includes a specialized high school, STEM Innovation Academy of the Oranges, which offers a STEM-focused pathway for students in grades nine through twelve.

For a family considering Cleveland Street Elementary, the school serves a high-need population in a dense urban setting. The academic proficiency data shows that the school is working to improve student outcomes, with English language arts results generally stronger than math results, and with science results presenting a particular area of concern. The district's SDA status means that school facilities are supported by state funding for building and renovation projects. The shift to an elected school board gives residents a direct voice in district governance. Families looking for a school with a strong record of academic proficiency may want to explore the school's specific academic support programs and intervention strategies in more detail.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 313%

School 13% · District 21% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

Grade 421%

School 21% · District 27% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Grade 519%

School 19% · District 20% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

Grade 621%

School 21% · District 23% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

Grade 732%

School 32% · District 28% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 345%

School 45% · District 27% · ▲ 18 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 37% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 35% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

Grade 649%

School 49% · District 45% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 49% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

Science

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 11% · ▼ 11 pts below district

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

This schoolORANGE BOARD OF EDUCATION 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 4Lower-income41%Higher-income10%31 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income21%Higher-income20%1 pp gap