Jhs 98 Herman Ridder, Bronx NY - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Jhs 98 Herman Ridder

JHS 98 Herman Ridder sits in the South Bronx on Boston Road, serving grades 6 through 8 in a setting where the vast majority of students face economic hardship. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a significant Black population and very small counts of other groups. The school enrolls a small population for its grade band, with fewer than one hundred students across three grades.

In state testing, the school's results show students struggling across all tested subjects. In math, proficiency runs in the low-to-mid range across sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, with eighth graders performing somewhat better than their younger peers. English language arts proficiency sits lower than math, consistently falling short of half proficiency in each grade. Science, tested only in eighth grade, shows the lowest results of all, with about one in five students meeting proficiency standards. This pattern suggests students are arriving at middle school with gaps that have widened rather than closed. On state tests, this school lands in the bottom quartile among Bronx County districts when measured by overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades.

The school operates within New York City's community school district structure (District 12), which has made significant changes to how math and reading are taught. All elementary schools in District 12 adopted the Into Reading curriculum in 2023, shifting to a phonics-based literacy approach. Middle schools, including this one, moved to Illustrative Mathematics as part of the NYC Solves math mandate beginning in 2024. These are lasting, district-wide changes that affect daily instruction. Beginning fall 2026, elementary schools will adopt Illustrative Mathematics as well, representing the first time the city has mandated elementary math curriculum.

The Bronx itself is experiencing substantial residential growth, with significant new affordable housing development concentrated in projects along the Harlem River, in Melrose, and across several neighborhoods. The borough has a dense network of transit including subway lines and Metro-North service, along with large parks and civic institutions. The local character shifts by neighborhood: some areas are walkable residential enclaves while others are dense urban hubs; commercial activity concentrates on corridors like White Plains Road. Housing values in the zip code where the school is located have appreciated, though most residents in this neighborhood work in health care, education, or service sectors rather than commanding high incomes.

For a family considering this school, the core question is straightforward: students here are coming from circumstances of substantial economic stress, and their state test results show they are not meeting grade-level standards in core academic subjects. A parent would want to know directly from the school what reading and math support exists, how the new curricula are being implemented at the classroom level, and what progress data the school tracks beyond state tests. The small enrollment may mean closer community and fewer institutional layers, or it may signal other challenges; that would be worth understanding with the principal. This is a school where many students need catching up, and where instruction is in transition across the district.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 25% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 729%

School 29% · District 36% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Grade 838%

School 38% · District 38%

even with state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 638%

School 38% · District 31% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 727%

School 27% · District 36% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 829%

School 29% · District 36% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 28% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 822%

School 22% · district not reported

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

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #12, 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.