Emerson Community School, Plainfield NJ

Original Research by School Decision on Emerson Community School

Emerson Community School is a regular public elementary school in Plainfield, New Jersey, serving kindergarten through fifth grade. It is one of the neighborhood schools within the Plainfield Public School District, a system that has recently opened a new elementary facility as part of a broader shift in its school footprint. The school sits in a city that is both a historic suburban hub and an urban center in its own right, with a dense, walkable core, a train station connecting to Newark and New York, and significant redevelopment underway.

The student body is large for an elementary school. A substantial share of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school in a high-poverty context. The enrollment is almost entirely Hispanic and Black, with a small number of white and Asian students. Plainfield itself is a majority-Latino city, a demographic shift that accelerated in the last decade and is reflected in the school’s composition.

State test results from the NJSLA provide a mixed picture. In third grade, just over half of students met the state’s benchmark in math, and nearly half did in English language arts. By fourth and fifth grade, math proficiency was lower, while English language arts held roughly steady. Science achievement in fifth grade was a soft spot; a parent may want to look into this further with the school, as the proportion reaching the state’s standard was small. Overall, the school’s combined proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits below the midpoint among districts in Union County. That comparison set includes all the county’s districts, so families should weigh it alongside the fact that Plainfield serves a student population with higher-than-average economic need.

Because Emerson Community School serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report. Data on special education and English learner enrollment, as well as chronic absenteeism, were not available, so it is hard to assess how the school supports students with additional needs. The district brief notes a recent capital project: the opening of the Charles and Anna Booker Elementary School in 2023, a new facility replacing two older ones. That kind of sustained investment in school infrastructure suggests the district is working to update its physical spaces, though it does not directly speak to Emerson’s own building.

The housing market in the broader area is competitive. Home values in the school’s zip code are above the national median, and Union County listings are active with moderate days on market. For families considering moving into the attendance zone, Plainfield offers a mix of historic homes and newer redevelopment projects, with a commute-oriented location. Downtown has commercial strips, a library, and civic anchors, and the city is described as experiencing an economic renaissance with major redevelopment underway.

For a parent or resident, Emerson Community School is a high-poverty, diverse elementary school in a city undergoing change. Its test performance is uneven, with stronger early-grade results and a drop-off in upper elementary math and science. The school’s size, demographics, and setting are characteristics that families may weigh differently depending on their priorities. Given the gaps in available data on special populations and attendance, a conversation with the school about student support and daily operations would be worthwhile before making a decision.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 354%

School 54% · District 29% · ▲ 25 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 431%

School 31% · District 21% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Grade 529%

School 29% · District 19% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 348%

School 48% · District 23% · ▲ 25 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 434%

School 34% · District 22% · ▲ 12 pts above district

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

Grade 543%

School 43% · District 26% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Science

Grade 58%

School 8% · District 8%

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

This schoolPlainfield Public 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-income45%Higher-income52%7 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income33%Higher-income35%2 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income47%Higher-income38%9 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income46%Higher-income64%18 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income30%Higher-income33%4 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income20%Higher-income43%24 pp gap