Lake Hiawatha Elementary School, Lake Hiawatha NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Lake Hiawatha Elementary School

Lake Hiawatha Elementary School serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as part of the Parsippany-Troy Hills Township School District in Morris County. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. The school's enrollment is moderate for an elementary building in this district, and the student body reflects a notably diverse community. Asian American students make up the largest share of enrollment, followed by white students, Hispanic students, and smaller populations of Black, multiracial, and other backgrounds. About one in five students qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a lower rate than many districts in the county and suggests a comparatively more affluent student population. Data on the share of students with disabilities or English learner status was not available in the current profile; a parent may wish to ask the school directly about these supports.

Academically, Lake Hiawatha Elementary posts a mixed picture that parents will want to evaluate grade by grade. In math, the school shows consistent strength across all tested grades, with proficiency rates that fall well above the midpoint among schools in Morris County when averaged across subjects. Results in English language arts are more uneven. Fourth graders perform at a strong level, but third-grade ELA proficiency is noticeably lower, and fifth grade sits in the middle range. Fifth-grade science proficiency also lands around the midpoint. The overall proficiency index, which combines all tested subjects and grades, places the school above the midpoint relative to other districts in Morris County. The pattern suggests that math instruction is a clear bright spot, while reading and language arts may have pockets where students need additional support.

The community context shapes the school experience in concrete ways. Lake Hiawatha itself is a primarily residential unincorporated community within Parsippany-Troy Hills Township. It began as a summer lake settlement in the early twentieth century, and as the lake dried up, seasonal cabins were converted into year-round homes. Today the area is seeing gradual redevelopment as older bungalows are sold to builders and replaced with larger colonials, reflecting rising property values. The housing stock is tight, with very low vacancy. Single-family homes dominate the landscape, and the community is auto-oriented, though a Park and Ride lot on Beverwyck Road offers bus commuter service to Manhattan. The commercial corridor along Beverwyck Road holds small businesses, a library, and nearby parks and a swim club that serve as community anchors.

For families considering this school, the trade-offs center on academic consistency. The math program delivers reliably strong results, and the school's overall proficiency index is solid relative to county peers. But the lower third-grade ELA scores are a soft spot that warrants a conversation with the school about reading intervention and curriculum. The district has been focused on facility upgrades and expanding full-day kindergarten, which currently is not available at all elementary schools; a parent should confirm current kindergarten offerings directly with the school. The surrounding community is stable and gradually redeveloping, with a mix of multi-generational families and newcomers. A family that values a diverse, suburban elementary school with strong math outcomes and wants to understand the literacy support for younger students will find this a school worth a close look.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 371%

School 71% · District 75% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 466%

School 66% · District 71% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 571%

School 71% · District 73% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 348%

School 48% · District 62% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 475%

School 75% · District 76% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 71% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 551%

School 51% · District 54% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

This schoolParsippany-Troy Hills Township 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 3Lower-income26%Higher-income59%33 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income42%Higher-income83%41 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income27%Higher-income70%43 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income42%Higher-income85%43 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income17%Higher-income77%61 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income36%Higher-income77%40 pp gap