John G Borden Middle School, Wallkill NY

Original Research by School Decision on John G Borden Middle School

John G. Borden Middle School is a regular public middle school in Wallkill, Ulster County, serving seventh and eighth grade students. The school has a modest enrollment spread fairly evenly across its two grades. About forty percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is majority white, with a substantial Hispanic population and smaller numbers of Black students and students from other backgrounds.

The school's state assessment results reveal areas where a parent should expect closer attention. In seventh-grade math, roughly two-thirds of students tested demonstrated proficiency, which stands above the midpoint among Ulster County's districts on an overall proficiency index. However, eighth-grade math proficiency drops to less than half of tested students. The pattern repeats in English language arts: seventh-grade proficiency is near half, and eighth-grade sits just below that. In eighth-grade science, about half tested students were proficient. Notably, participation rates on the eighth-grade assessments are quite low—under half for ELA and science, and around a third for math—which means the proficiency figures are based on smaller groups than the overall eighth-grade population and should be read with that context. A parent may want to look into the school's approach to test participation and what is driving these varying rates by grade.

The school sits within the Wallkill Central School District, which recently completed voter approval of a capital improvement project that is making tangible changes families experience. At Borden specifically, that has included a new weight room. District-wide, the project is adding air conditioning to classrooms, upgrading roofs and air quality, and installing security vestibules.

Wallkill itself is a small, quiet residential hamlet in the eastern part of the Town of Shawangunk. Most residents own their homes, and the setting reads sparse and suburban rather than densely built. The hamlet center has a small business zone and public amenities including a town park and library, but like most small communities, daily errands require a car. The hamlet's growth has been slow and modest; recent planning efforts aim at measured revitalization. A couple of proposed housing developments are under consideration, but no major expansion is underway. The area is home to state correctional facilities and some light industrial employers along the railroad corridor, with larger job centers located in nearby Newburgh and Kingston.

Housing values in the area have appreciated modestly, and the cost of living reads at a multiple of median income that suggests affordability is tighter than national norms, though not severely so. The local economic context shows stable employment overall, with mortgage rates and rental costs reflecting current national conditions.

For a family choosing this school, the key academic question centers on eighth grade. The proficiency shifts significantly from seventh grade, and participation data suggest the school may face engagement challenges in the older grade. Whether this reflects the natural difficulty of the transition to eighth grade, curriculum issues, or student factors would be worth discussing directly with school leadership. Otherwise, the school offers a conventional middle school experience in a stable, residential community where the district is actively maintaining and improving its facilities.

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Academic performance

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

New York Regents Exams

2 courses reported · 2024-25

End-of-course exams required for a New York Regents diploma. Each row shows the cohort size and the share of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

Course	Students tested	% proficient
Math	68	100.0%
Science	59	100.0%

Math

Grade 765%

School 65% · District 64% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 44% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 748%

School 48% · District 48%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 46% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Science

Grade 850%

School 50% · District 49% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

Social studies

Grade 871%

School 71% · district not reported

▼ 7 pts below state median

This schoolWALLKILL CENTRAL 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 7Lower-income29%Higher-income57%28 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income35%Higher-income54%19 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 7Lower-income46%Higher-income73%26 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income59%Higher-income36%23 pp gap