The top reported proficiency rate is 70% in English language arts. The lowest is 27% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Roosevelt Middle School
Roosevelt Middle School serves seventh and eighth graders in West Orange, a suburban township in Essex County that sits roughly midway between Newark and Manhattan. The school is one of three middle schools in the West Orange Public Schools district, and it operates as a regular public school. The township itself combines residential neighborhoods, including the historic planned community of Llewellyn Park, with commercial corridors and significant preserved open space, notably South Mountain Reservation and Eagle Rock Reservation. The civic core runs along Main Street in the Valley section, where the municipal building, library, and a developing arts district are located. West Orange has seen continued modest population growth, and the district has recently expanded pre-K capacity and reorganized its middle school feeder patterns, moving to a central sixth-grade model before students enter Roosevelt for seventh and eighth grades.
Roosevelt's student body is diverse. The school serves an enrollment that is roughly balanced between seventh and eighth graders, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The racial and ethnic composition includes a mix of students who are Black, Hispanic, white, and those identifying as two or more races, with smaller shares of Asian students. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source materials.
State testing results, from the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment, show a split picture across subjects and grades. In English language arts, performance is a clear strength. Seventh graders scored well above the midpoint among tested schools, and eighth graders also performed at a solid level, with the majority of students in both grades demonstrating proficiency. Math results are notably softer. Seventh-grade math proficiency was below what many families would hope for, and eighth-grade math proficiency was considerably lower. Science results, tested only in eighth grade, also fell below the halfway mark, a pattern a parent may want to explore further with the school to understand the academic support and curriculum approach in these areas. Overall, when combining all tested subjects and grades, the school's proficiency index places it above the midpoint relative to other districts across Essex County.
Because Roosevelt serves only seventh and eighth grades, no graduation rate is reported, and that is expected for this grade band. Chronic absenteeism data was also not available in the source materials, so patterns around daily attendance are not part of this picture. No program offerings such as specific elective tracks or extracurriculars were included in the data provided.
The housing market in the area reflects a high-cost suburban environment. Home values and rents are both above national benchmarks, and the monthly cost of owning versus renting tilts toward renting being the less expensive option month to month. The county-level market shows moderate inventory levels and a typical number of days on the market that suggests homes are not sitting idle for long stretches. For a family considering moving to West Orange, the cost of entry is significant, and the township's character as a commuter suburb with good access to both Newark and New York is a central consideration.
Roosevelt Middle School offers a middle school experience in a diverse, suburban setting where English language arts results are a standout, while math and science proficiency present areas where the school's performance is less consistent. The school sits within a district that has been actively reshaping its grade configuration and early childhood offerings, so the immediate context for families includes recent structural changes to how students move through the elementary and middle grades. For a parent, the decision will hinge on how the school's academic profile in math and science aligns with their child's needs, and how the broader West Orange community and its housing market fit their family's priorities.
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