It was a very good year in academia for a few Rumson and Fair Haven schools.

U.S. News and World Report in late November released its comprehensive 2025 ranking of the state’s top elementary/middle schools. After reviewing and rating roughly 47,000 elementary and middle schools nationwide and 2,339 in New Jersey, the report cited that Rumson’s Forrestdale School ranked fifth, Deane-Porter Elementary School came in at 22 and Fair Haven’s Viola L. Sickles School ranked 36.

According to U.S. News & World Report, the annual study uses data from the U.S. Department of Education to measure schools on proficiency in math and reading, student achievement and teacher-to-student ratios.

Forrestdale, the report said, “is a public school located in Rumson, NJ, which is in a large suburb setting. The student population of Forrestdale School is 525 and the school serves 4-8. At Forrestdale School, 85 percent of students scored at or above the proficient level for math, and 90 percent scored at or above that level for reading. The student-teacher ratio is 9:1, which is better than that of the district. The student population is made up of 46 percent female students and 54 percent male. The school enrolls 1 percent economically disadvantaged students. There are 58 equivalent full-time teachers and one full-time school counselor.”

U.S. News & World Report

Other nearby schools that ranked high on the list were: Navesink Elementary School at 13; and Point Road School in Little Silver at 23.

“Great schools rely on strong community support, dedicated teachers, and programs that help children grow both inside and outside the classroom,” said Commissioner Erik Anderson, liaison to the Monmouth County Superintendent of Schools, in a county released statement. “Rankings such as the one from U.S. News & World Report help paint a picture of how local districts are performing. Congratulations to our local schools for achieving this level of academic excellence and recognition.”