The top reported proficiency rate is 14% in Science. The lowest is 3% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Toby Farms Intermediate School
Toby Farms Intermediate School is a small public school serving grades four through eight in Chester Township, part of the Chester-Upland School District. The school sits in a dense suburban township adjacent to the city of Chester, in an area shaped by industrial parks and residential neighborhoods, with family incomes and home values well below the Delaware County average.
The student body is predominantly African American, with most families qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Enrollment is small, clustered mainly in grades six through eight, with only a handful of students in grades four and five. This reflects the school's intermediate-level role within the district's structure. The specific count of students with individualized education plans or English learners was not available in the data provided.
Academic proficiency is very low across tested subjects. In mathematics, the proficiency rate on Pennsylvania's state assessment was in the low single digits. In English language arts, proficiency stood at under ten percent. Science proficiency, measured in a prior year, was under fifteen percent. These results place the school in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Delaware County on overall proficiency index. A parent may want to look into this further with the school itself to understand what support systems are in place and what growth is targeted.
The school operates within the Chester-Upland School District, which has been under state-appointed receivership since the mid-2010s and remains there as of now. This means budget, hiring, and other major decisions are made by a court-appointed receiver rather than an elected board. The district did reject charter-operator proposals in 2021 and has since committed to operating as a traditional public school district. Widener University, through a partnership that transferred its charter school into the district in 2022, now offers scholarship support—a minimum sum over four years for undergraduate study—to all Chester-Upland high school graduates who meet admissions requirements. That benefit applies to graduates of the district, though students still in intermediate grades are several years away from access to it.
No information on course offerings, extracurricular programs, staffing levels, or attendance data was available in the data provided. The school's website address was not supplied, so prospective families would need to reach out through the district or search for contact information directly.
Chester Township itself is small and industrial in character, with a mix of owner-occupied residential blocks and three industrial parks. Retail and dining options are limited within the township; residents typically travel to neighboring communities for shopping and food. Interstate 95 runs through the southern part of the township. Public transit is provided by SEPTA, with the Chester Transit Center—a hub for bus and regional rail service—located in the adjacent city of Chester. Population has been stable in recent years.
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