Elementary school (grades K-5) · Clifton, NJ

School #5

Federal NCES profile for School #5, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 57/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 340330004776
0/100100/10057/100
👥 S:T ratio
56
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
20
📋 Attendance
82
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

School #5 earns 57/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the New Jersey median.

#4 of 7
elementary schools in Clifton · Resource Index
57
Resource Index · Higher
11.1:1
students per teacher
46.6%
free-lunch eligible

School #5 has class sizes near the New Jersey median. Computed live against every New Jersey school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, School #5 ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in Clifton, NJ.

Enrollment

398

New Jersey · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

36.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

11.1:1

vs 11.8:1 New Jersey avg

-6% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

46.6%

vs 29.6% New Jersey avg

+57% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How School #5 compares with New Jersey and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at School #5

School #5 is a mid-sized elementary school in Clifton, New Jersey, enrolling 398 students.

At 11.1:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the New Jersey median, within a few percentage points of the 11.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 46.6% of students eligible for free meals.

With 398 students, its enrollment sits close to the New Jersey median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,501 scored New Jersey schools.

Against 294 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #63.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (56%) and White (30%) (diversity index 59/100).

Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 398 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.

Attendance holds up well here: only 7.3% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.

Clifton Public School District also operates Clifton High School (3,150 students) and Woodrow Wilson Middle School (1,255 students) alongside School #5.

Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25

How School #5 compares

School #5 on the metrics families compare, against New Jersey and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs New Jersey New Jersey avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 11.1:1 ▼ 6% 11.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 46.6% ▲ 57% 29.6% 51.7%
Enrollment 398 top 55% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

11.1:1
Leaner classes than 82% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
398
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
46.6%
free-lunch eligible - 57% above the New Jersey average of 29.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.1:1
students per teacher - 6% below state mean
Top 45% in New Jersey - lower ratio than 55% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
7.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$22,669
per pupil, district-wide - below New Jersey avg of $24,984
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 398 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

Overview

  • Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
  • Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
  • F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.

Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.

Student demographics

Hispanic or Latino 55.8%
White 29.9%
Asian 9.0%
African American 3.3%
Two or More 2.0%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 55.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 59.0/100

Simpson diversity index - at 59.0, School #5 is more mixed than the New Jersey school average of 51.2.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Clifton Public School District, which includes School #5.

$22,669
Per student
-9%
vs New Jersey
Avg $24,984
+37%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 51.1%
State 39.2%
Federal 9.7%

Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.

How School #5 Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Clifton High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Woodrow Wilson Middle School Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Christopher Columbus Middle School Larger Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio
School #12 Larger Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
School #17 Larger Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to School #5's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Clifton Public School District · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New Jersey, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on School #5's federal record.

Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.

Frequently asked questions about School #5

How many students attend School #5?

School #5 has 398 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Clifton, NJ.

What is the student-teacher ratio at School #5?

The student-teacher ratio at School #5 is 11.1:1, which is 6% lower than the New Jersey average of 11.8:1 and 29% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at School #5?

46.6% of students at School #5 are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New Jersey average of 29.6%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of School #5?

The largest demographic group at School #5 is Hispanic or Latino at 55.8% of enrollment, in Clifton, NJ. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.0/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for School #5?

School #5 has a Resource Investment Index of 57/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does School #5 rank among elementary schools in Clifton?

By Resource Investment Index, School #5 ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in Clifton, NJ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Clifton on the city page.

Is School #5 a good school?

School #5 earns 57/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the New Jersey median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.

What other schools are in Clifton Public School District?

Besides School #5, Clifton Public School District also operates Clifton High School (3,150 students), Woodrow Wilson Middle School (1,255 students), and Christopher Columbus Middle School (1,092 students). See the Clifton Public School District district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

View saved

Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.