The top reported proficiency rate is 53% in English language arts. The lowest is 21% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School
Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School sits within the dense, urban grid of Union City, New Jersey, one of the most tightly packed municipalities in the country. The school serves students from kindergarten through sixth grade, and its neighborhood is defined by multi-family housing, street-level retail, and a strong Cuban-American cultural presence. This is not a school with a sprawling campus; it is woven into the fabric of a city that is entirely landlocked and built out. The district is in the midst of a notable capital expansion, building the new Esther Salas Academy for grades seven through nine, a project that signals a reshaping of the middle-grade experience and an effort to relieve overcrowding. That investment reflects the district’s broader trajectory, and it will affect where Roosevelt’s sixth graders go next.
The student body at Roosevelt is large for an elementary school. It is overwhelmingly Hispanic, which mirrors the community it serves. A very substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school in a high-poverty context. Data on the share of students with Individualized Education Programs or English learner status was not available in the materials provided, so a parent would want to ask the school directly about the special education and English language learner supports on offer.
On state assessments, Roosevelt’s results present a mix. In English language arts, performance strengthens as students move up through the grades. Third-grade proficiency is lower than the later grades, while sixth-grade proficiency is meaningfully higher, reaching a level that is a clear bright spot in the school’s academic picture. In math, the pattern is less steady. Fourth-grade math proficiency dips below the third- and fifth-grade rates, while sixth-grade math is the strongest of the elementary grades. Science results at the fifth-grade level are notably lower, and a family may want to understand how the school approaches science instruction and whether there are any recent changes to the curriculum.
Overall, when combining all tested subjects and grades, the school’s proficiency index sits above the midpoint among districts in Hudson County. That is a solid position for a school serving a high-need population, though the spread between stronger and weaker grade-subject combinations is wide enough that a parent’s experience could vary significantly depending on their child’s grade and teacher.
Because Roosevelt does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report. The school also did not have chronic absenteeism data in the available materials, so that is another area where a parent may want to follow up directly. No information was provided on program offerings such as gifted and talented, arts, or before- and after-school care, so those remain open questions.
The housing market in the area is expensive. Home values have risen substantially over the past year, and rents have also climbed. The typical rent in the zip code is high relative to typical incomes, so the cost of living is a factor that families should weigh against the school’s attributes. Union City has a very dense street grid, active commercial corridors, and a city hall and library embedded in the neighborhood, not set apart on a suburban campus. The community is served by bus routes connecting to New York City, and the city’s only major park, Washington Park, sits at its southern edge.
For a family considering Roosevelt, the picture is straightforward. This is a school in a dense, intensely urban setting with a large, predominantly Hispanic, low-income student body. Its academic performance is mixed but above the midpoint for the county overall, with stronger English scores in the upper elementary grades and math that varies more from year to year. The district is investing in new facilities, which speaks to long-term planning, but the immediate reality is a school that serves a high-need community and shows a range of results rather than uniform strength. A parent should visit, talk to the principal about supports for English learners and special education, and examine how the school’s approach matches their child’s needs before making a decision.
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