Cherry Hill Schools Get High Marks In New Rankings

CHERRY HILL, NJ — Cherry Hill has Camden County's second-best school system, with high marks for academics. But the district received lower grades in several other categories, according to Niche's 2025 Best Schools and Districts rankings.

The rankings, released Monday, place Cherry Hill in 79th among 243 eligible New Jersey school districts. Niche gave Cherry Hill Public Schools an A-minus — the highest grade among all Camden County school districts besides Haddonfield.

Here's how Niche graded Cherry Hill across nine different categories:

• academics: A
• teachers: B+
• clubs and activities: B+
• sports: B
• resources and facilities: D+
• diversity: A-
• college prep: A+
• administration: C
• food: C-

Niche publishes annual rankings of K-12 schools and districts across the nation. The website combines input from current students, alumni and parents with hard data from sources including the U.S. Department of Education.

The rankings were created to provide families with valuable information — both quantitative and qualitative — on schools in their area or in a neighborhood they're not familiar with yet, according to Niche. Learn more about Niche's methodology.

"Choosing the right school for our children can have a real ripple effect on their lives — from career path and earning potential to how they'll contribute to society," said Niche CEO Luke Skurman. "Our annual K-12 rankings empower families to make informed decisions and help lay a strong foundation for their children's futures."

However, "best schools" rankings have their critics. James Fallows, a former U.S. News & World Report editor, even called them "meaningless" in a 2021 interview with NPR.

"The reason they (U.S. News) started doing it back in the early 1980s under the guidance of a man named Mel Elfin, was because it was a brilliant business strategy," Fallows said. "By appealing to the human desire for rankings and knowing where you stand and where somebody else stands, they were able to make a very strong part of their business, which is now basically the only part of their business."