These Are N.J.'s Top 25 High Schools, U.S. News Says

Patch /U.S. News  April 25, 2017

TRENTON — U.S. News and World Report released its annual ranking of America's best high schools Tuesday, and 25 New Jersey schools made the top 500, including three in the top 100. 

High Technology High School in Monmouth County, a small academy with selective enrollment, led New Jersey, placing 16th in the nation. It also ranked as the nation's best specialized school for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for the third-straight year. 

New Jersey schools with selective enrollment, including specialized high schools run by county vocational districts, typically rank ahead of many of the state's traditional high schools. 

Small academies within school districts also fared well. Elizabeth Public Schools, which divided its high school into six different academies, placed two high schools in the state's top 25. 

See the list of New Jersey's 25 best high school below and visit U.S. News and World Report for more information and the full list of America's best high schools. 

How were the school ranked? 

U.S. News' ranking is one of the many lists that attempts to identify the best high schools in the country, and each has its own methodology. 

A school's graduation rate, performance on state math and English tests and scores and level of participation on Advanced Placement exams are the primary factors in the U.S News ranking. 

Schools with the highest ranking demonstrated strong performance among all students, including minority and low-income students.  

The list is based on an analysis of more than 28,000 public schools, according to U.S. News. The 25 New Jersey schools ranked in the top 500 each earned a gold medal from U.S. News, meaning their students have the highest level of college readiness.

...

13. Millburn High School

Location: Millburn Township, Essex County 

National ranking: 316

12. Summit Senior High School

Location: Summit, Union County 

National ranking: 305

11. Livingston High School

Location: Livingston Township, Essex County

National ranking: 296

7. Chatham High School

Location: Chatham Township, Morris County

National ranking: 189

4. Union County Magnet High School

Location: Scotch Plains Township, Union County 

National ranking: 105

(Requires exam for admission)

What about other schools?

To see how schools from other states fared and find out which New Jersey schools just missed the top 500, visit the full rankings. 

New Jersey Has 3 of the Best Places to Live in America, Study Says

New Jersey Has 3 of the Best Places to Live in America, Study Says

Patch / 24/7 Wall St  January 25, 2017

Looking to live among prosperous, healthy people who live lives relatively free from financial struggle? New Jersey has them, one study says, even if they are among the most expensive places to live in America.


The data compiler 24/7 Wall St. developed a list of the 25 best counties in which to live, based on an index based on three social measures — educational attainment, poverty rate and life expectancy. 24/7 then ranked counties based on their well-being

17. Morris County, New Jersey
> 5-yr. population change: +1.7%
> Nov. unemployment rate: 3.2%
> Poverty rate: 4.5%
> Life expectancy at birth: 82.3 years

24/7 says Morris Countyis one of just 11 counties in the U.S. with a six-figure median annual household income. 

With over half of all area households earning at least $100,000 a year, relatively few area residents face serious financial hardship. Only 4.5% of Morris County’s nearly half a million residents live in poverty, less than a third of the national 15.5% poverty rate.

Morris County is within commuting distance of New York City, one of the largest most diverse job markets in the country. The relative availability of jobs in the area likely reduces the share of county workers out of a job. Morris County’s 3.2% unemployment rate is well below the 4.6% national unemployment rate...

Chatham, Milburn and Summit ranked in Top 10 Best School Districts in NJ

Chatham, Milburn and Summit ranked in Top 10 Best School Districts in NJ

Niche   January 14, 2017

The 2017 Best School Districts ranking is based on rigorous analysis of key statistics and millions of reviews from students and parents using data from the U.S. Department of Education. Ranking factors include state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, SAT/ACT scores, teacher quality, public school district ratings, and more.

1) Princeton Public Schools

2) Millburn Township Schools

3) West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District

4) The School District of the Chathams

5) Montgomery Township School District

6) Tenafly Public Schools

7) East Brunswick Public Schools

8) Bernards Township School District

9) Livingston Public Schools

10) Summit Public Schools

11) Hopewell Valley Regional School District

12) Mountain Lakes School District

13) Ridgewood Public Schools

14) Montclair Public Schools

15) Fair Lawn School District

16) South Brunswick Public Schools

17) Moorestown Township Public School District

18) Berkeley Heights Public Schools

19) Glen Rock Public School District

20) West Morris Regional High School District

To View the Full List Click Below...

Chatham Twp. Ranked 22nd Safest Town In America: SafeWise Report 2016

Chatham Patch   April 20, 2016

CHATHAM TWP., N.J. - Congratulations, Chatham Township: You’re one of the safest cities in all of America.

According to safewise.com’s annual rankings, Chatham Township came in 22nd overall in the category of towns with populations over 10,000 residents. Washington Township (Morris County) was the only New Jersey town to crack the top-20, and was joined by Chatham Township at number 22. Dozens more Garden State towns speckled the top 100. The full list can be seen here.

SafeWise is an independent company that specializes in home security reviews, comparisons, and advice for consumers to make the best decisions on how to protect their home.
The site’s methodology and ranking system came from Uniform Crime Report data for the full year of 2014.

“This little town isn't too far from the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge,” the site’s ranking said of Chatham Township. “With protected land nearby, it makes sense that Chatham Township has also dedicated a lot of its resources to protecting its own people. The local police department developed "10 Community Policing Districts," which provides people in those areas with programs like the Medicine Drop Box that gives people a place to safely dispose of unwanted medication.”
Chatham Township Mayor Curt Ritter said it’s a town-wide, ongoing effort to be consistently ranked among the best.

"We are pleased to once again be recognized as one of the safest towns in the United States,” Ritter told Patch. “This is a testament to the commitment of township officials, police and residents working together to ensure that Chatham Township remains one of the safest towns in America to live and raise a family. From our new Neighborhood Watch initiative, to Operation Reassurance, Community Policing and our annual National Night Out events, these programs highlight our commitment to ensuring the safety of our residents.” ...

Chatham Among Top U.S. News High Schools In NJ

Chatham Patch    April 19, 2016

Perhaps the most respected of publications that surveys the top high schools in the nation came out with its 2016 list this week.

U.S. News evaluated more than 28,000 schools to determine the top public high schools nationally, and in all 50 states and the District of Columbia (see list below).

All schools in the 2016 U.S. News Best High Schools rankings have graduating students who get exposure to college-level work by passing at least one AP or IB exam, according to the publication.

U.S. News also looked at the following criteria:
•Overall student performance on state-required tests;
•How effectively schools educated their disadvantaged students – those of black, Hispanic and low-income backgrounds;
•High school graduation rates (new this year);
•How well they prepared students for college based on participation in and performance on AP and IB exams.

Read the full methodology here.

Here is the list of top schools in New Jersey - schools in the top 200 nationally were so noted:
1.High Technology High School, Middletown (11th nationally)
2.Biotechnology High School, Freehold (14th nationally)
3.Dr. Ronald E McNair High School, Jersey City (48th nationally)
4.Bergen County Technical High School, Teterboro (61st nationally)
5.Bergen County Academies, Hackensack (92nd nationally)
6.Union County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains (134th nationally)
7.Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies, Edison (167th nationally)
8.Elizabeth High School, Elizabeth (183rd nationally)
9.Academy of Allied Health and Science, Neptune (189th nationally)
10.Princeton High School, Princeton (192nd nationally)
11.Rumson-​Fair Haven Regional High School, Rumson
12.Middlesex County Academy for Allied Health, Woodbridge
13.Tenafly High School, Tenafly
14.Glen Rock High School, Glen Rock
15.Haddonfield Memorial High School, Haddonfield
16.Chatham High School, Chatham
17.North Star Academy Charter School of Newark, Newark
18.Bernards High School, Bernardsville
19.Summit Senior High School, Summit
20.Science Park High School, Newark
21.Ridge High School, Basking Ridge
22.West Windsor-​Plainsboro High School North, Plainsboro
23.Montgomery High School, Skillman
24.Millburn High School, Millburn ...

Chatham #1 Safest City in NJ: The SafeWise Report 2015

SafeWise.com     August 3, 2015

New Jersey’s leaders, residents, and law enforcement officers can be proud that their pro-active approach to fighting crime is paying off. Since the last time we reported on New Jersey, violent crime dropped from 4.45 to 2.85 incidents per 1,000 residents, and property crime fell from 26.81 to 18.81 incidents per 1,000 citizens....

1. Chatham Township

Kudos to Chatham Township for being the safest community in New Jersey! We were pleased to discover that Chatham’s police department recently earned Accreditation by the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Accreditation Commission. Plus, a community-wide Neighborhood Watch Program just got off the ground here, which exemplifies community involvement in safety.

An outstanding example of law enforcement and citizens working hand in hand to keep crime at bay, Chatham Township reported no incidents of violent crime and enjoys an overall crime rate that’s 85 percent lower than the national average. Chatham also ranked number 14 on the SafeWise 100 Safest Cities in America report.

Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.00
Property Crimes per 1,000: 3.93 ...

The Top High Schools 2014: Chatham Takes the Top Spot

NJ Monthly    August 11, 2014

New Jersey has a new number 1 high school. Chatham High School in Morris County jumps to the top of New Jersey Monthly’s 2014 rankings of the state’s top public high schools. (Download the full 2014 list at the bottom of this article.)

“I’m very proud of what our students have accomplished and what our teachers do in the classroom every day,” says Chatham High School principal Darren Groh. As keys to Chatham High’s success, he cites a supportive community with parents who value education, a high level of participation by students in extracurricular activities and a “comfortable” school environment.

In 2012, the last time New Jersey Monthly published a ranking of the top schools, Chatham was number 20. The school’s march up the chart is fueled largely by changes in our methodology, which in turn reflect changes in the state Department of Education’s annual School Performance Reports. The DOE reports for the 2012-2013 school year are the sole source of data used by New Jersey Monthly in the school rankings. (For complete methodology, click here.)

Chatham has always been a strong contender; the school was number 8 in the 2010 ranking and number 10 in 2008. What drove it to number 1 this year?....