How Morristown Area Schools Were Graded On New State Report

Morristown, Morris Township, and Morris Plains schools span a wide range of rankings in a controversial rating system that educators say paints an incomplete picture of the state's 2,100 schools.

The schools are rated on a 1-100 scale. The ratings, which were released Wednesday, were established to comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which replaced the controversial No Child Left Behind Act.

The ratings for high schools are based on graduation and absenteeism rates and PARCC scores, while elementary and middle school scores are based on absenteeism, PARCC and student progress on PARCC tests, according to the state Department of Education.

Patch obtained the "summative scores" from the state Department of Education, which shows schools in Cresskill, Millburn and Fair Haven as having the highest scores, getting a 96.73 or higher.

Based on the reports, it appears that schools that finished with at least a 50 score could be considered average. Schools that finish in the top 20 percent are considered above average.
Morristown area schools received the following scores and overall rankings (out of 2,088 schools):

• 295. MORRIS PLAINS BOROUGH SCHOOL, MORRIS PLAINS BORO, MORRIS 75.78
• 302. NORMANDY PARK SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 75.57
• 306. ALEXANDER HAMILTON, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 75.40
• 328. THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 74.13
• 541. SUSSEX AVENUE SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 65.86
• 1288. FRELINGHUYSEN MIDDLE SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 43.50
• 1603. MORRISTOWN HIGH SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 32.96

Schools that have third grade or higher also have "summative percentile rating," which shows how they compare to other high schools, middle and elementary schools. Those give elementary schools more weight in their scoring because they don't have the exact same criteria as high schools (like graduation rates).

The summative percentile ratings, and their statewide rankings are:

• 279. MORRIS PLAINS BOROUGH SCHOOL, MORRIS PLAINS BORO, MORRIS 86.73
• 302. NORMANDY PARK SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 75.57
• 306. ALEXANDER HAMILTON, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 75.40
• 315. THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 85.01
• 532. SUSSEX AVENUE SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 74.5
• 1294. FRELINGHUYSEN MIDDLE SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 38.03
• 1561. MORRISTOWN HIGH SCHOOL, MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT, MORRIS 25.21