The top reported proficiency rate is 45% in English language arts. The lowest is 33% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on School 19
School 19 serves students from kindergarten through fourth grade in the Paterson Public School District, a large urban system in Passaic County. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. The school’s enrollment is sizable for an early-elementary building, and it draws from a neighborhood within the city’s dense residential fabric. Paterson itself is a historically industrial city that has reinvented itself as a hub for immigrant communities; its population has been slowly growing, and the school reflects that diversity.
The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a large Asian population as well, and smaller shares of Black and white students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a marker of the economic challenges many families in Paterson face. The city has a poverty rate that is elevated compared to state averages, and the district’s budget—approved with a tax levy increase—shows the ongoing fiscal pressures of serving a high-needs population.
On state assessments, the school’s results present a mixed picture. In English language arts, third graders scored at a rate that was below the midpoint for the school’s own grade-level cohort, while fourth graders performed at a higher level, with a majority meeting the state’s proficiency criteria. In math, both grade levels lagged behind the ELA results, with fourth-grade math particularly soft. Taken together, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits just above the midpoint among the districts in Passaic County. This suggests that while some students are achieving at grade level, a significant portion are not, and families may want to talk with the school about how it supports students who are below the bar, especially in math.
Because School 19 only extends through fourth grade, there is no graduation rate to report. The district as a whole has adopted a new five-year strategic plan focused on improving student achievement and post-graduation readiness, which could eventually affect the elementary experience through curricular changes and resource allocation.
The school is located in a dense urban setting. Paterson is walkable in its commercial corridors, and the school sits within a residential neighborhood. The city’s major employers include the school district itself, the county government, and a large hospital system, and the area has active immigrant-owned commerce along Main Street. Housing values in the ZIP code that covers this part of Paterson are moderate by county standards, though the overall market in Passaic County has seen rising prices and a fairly tight supply.
For a parent considering School 19, the key takeaway is that this is a neighborhood elementary school in a high-poverty urban district, serving a diverse student population. Academic proficiency is a soft spot, particularly in math, but it is not uniformly low across all grades and subjects. The school does not offer any special programs or magnet themes in the available data, so the academic pathway is a traditional elementary curriculum. The peer environment is heavily Hispanic and Asian, reflective of the local immigrant community. A family that values a neighborhood school in a culturally rich, urban setting may find it a good fit, while a family seeking high test scores or specialized programming would want to look more closely at the school’s specific instructional support and compare it with other options in the district.
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