By Adam Clark and Carla Astudillo

Which schools in New Jersey make the grade?

It might not be perfect, but the state has a new way for rating its more than 2,000 public schools.

For the first time, New Jersey has scored schools on a scale of 1-100, a rating that considers standardized test results, chronic absenteeism and graduation rates for high schools.

As expected, many of the highest-scoring schools are the state's most elite public high schools, which are run by the county vocational technical districts and have selective enrollment. Plenty of elementary schools, the most common type of school in New Jersey, scored highly as well.

However, some of the high schools often considered among New Jersey's best received average scores.

The state acknowledges the ratings don't reflect the full picture of a school, and New Jersey's largest teachers union says the scores rely too heavily on standardized test results, creating a narrow view of what goes on inside the building.

For schools that got a higher score, the results show they're succeeding in some of the areas the Christie administration valued most, including improvement on annual PARCC exams in elementary and middle schools.

For schools that received lower scores, the ratings highlight areas where the state wants to see statistical improvement.

Check out the countdown below, beginning at No. 47 because of a four-way tie, to see the 50 highest scores from the state. Because elementary and middle schools were scored using different criteria than high schools, a higher score does not necessarily mean a better performance.

To get the best sense of a how a school compares to those that offer the same grades, look at the percentile rating. A high school rated in the 97th percentile, for example, scored in the top 3 percent of all high schools.

Note: Check here to find the score for other public schools that didn't make the top 50.

Scroll to the bottom of the list to learn more about how the ratings were determined.

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47. Fort Lee School No. 1 (tie)

District: Fort Lee Public Schools

Grades: K-6

Score: 89

Percentile: 98th

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47. Milford Brook School (tie)

District: Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District

Grades: K-5

Score: 89

Percentile: 98th

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47. Jefferson Elementary School (tie)

District: Roxbury Public Schools (tie)

Grades: K-4

Score: 89

Percentile: 98th

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47. East Amwell Township Elementary School (tie)

District: East Amwell Township School District

Grades: K-8

Score: 89

Percentile: 98th

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46. Washington Elementary School

District: Westfield Public Schools

Grades: 1-5

Score: 89.1

Percentile: 98th

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45. Evergreen Elementary School

District: Scotch Plains-Fanwood Regional School District

Grades: K-4

Score: 89.2

Percentile: 98th

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43. Kinnelon High School (tie)

District: Kinnelon Public Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 89.3

Percentile: 96th

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43. Betty McElmon Elementary School (tie)

District: West Long Branch Public Schools

Grades: K-4

Score: 89.3

Percentile: 99th

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42. Allen W. Roberts School

District: New Providence School District

Grades: K-6

Score: 89.5

Percentile: 99th

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40. Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School (tie)

District: N/A

Grades: K-8

Score: 89.8

Percentile: 99th

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40. Sunnymead Elementary School (tie)

District: Hillsborough Township School District

Grades: K-4

Score: 89.8

Percentile: 99th

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39. Infinity Institute

District: Jersey City Public Schools

Grades: 6-12

Score: 89.9

Percentile: 98th

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38. Brookside School

District: Allendale School District

Grades: 4-8

Score: 90.1

Percentile: 99th

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35. Toll Gate Grammar School (tie)

District: Hopewell Valley Regional School District

Grades: K-5

Score: 90.5

Percentile: 99th

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35. James Fallon Elementary School (tie)

District: Wayne Public Schools

Grades: K-5

Score: 90.5

Percentile: 99th

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35. Catherine A Dwyer Elementary School (tie)

District: Rockaway Township School District

Grades: K-5

Score: 90.5

Percentile: 99th

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32. Wolf Hill Elementary School (tie)

District: Oceanport School District

Grades: K-4

Score: 90.9

Percentile: 99th

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32. Torey J. Sabatini School (tie)

District: Madison Public Schools

Grades: K-5

Score: 90.9

Percentile: 99th

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32. Cranbury School (tie)

District: Cranbury School District

Grades: K-8

Score: 90.9

Percentile: 99th

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31. Troy Hills Elementary School

District: Parsippany-Troy Hills School District

Grades: K-5

Score: 91

Percentile: 99th

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30. Old Farmers Road School

District: Washington Township School District (Morris County)

Grades: K-5

Score: 91.2

Percentile: 99th

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29. Morris County School of Technology

District: Morris County Vocational School District

Grades: 9-12

Score: 91.5

Percentile: 96th

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28. Glen Rock High School

District: Glen Rock Public Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 91.6

Percentile: 97th

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27. Cliffside Park School No. 3

District: Cliffside Park School District

Grades: 1-6

Score: 91.9

Percentile: 99th

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26. Union County Tech

District: Union County Vocational Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 92

Percentile: 97th

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25. Knollwood School

District: Fair Haven Public Schools

Grades: 4-8

Score: 92.1

Percentile: 99th

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24. Woods Road Elementary School

District: Hillsborough Township School District

Grades: K-4

Score: 92.2

Percentile: 99th

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23. Middlesex County Academy

District: Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 92.3

Percentile: 97th

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22. Terence C. Reilly School No. 7

District: Elizabeth Public Schools

Grades: 2-8

Score: 92.4

Percentile: 99th

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21. Hillside Elementary School

District: Closter Public Schools

Grades: K-4

Score: 92.8

Percentile: 100th

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20. Radburn Elementary School

District: Fair Lawn Public Schools

Grades: K-5

Score: 93

Percentile: 100th

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19. Edward H. Bryan Elementary School

District: Cresskill Public Schools

Grades: K-5

Score: 93.1

Percentile: 100th

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18. Northvail Elementary School

District: Parsippany-Troy Hills School District

Grades: K-5

Score: 93.3

Percentile: 100th

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17. Cape May City Elementary School

District: Cape May City School District

Grades: K-6

Score: 93.5

Percentile: 100th

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15. Bergen County Academies (tie)

District: Bergen County Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 93.7

Percentile: 98th

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15. Academy For Information Technology (tie)

District: Union County Vocational Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 93.7

Percentile: 98th

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13. Central Jersey College Prep Charter School (tie)

District: N/A

Grades: K-2, 6-12

Score: 93.8

Percentile: 100th

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13. Barley Sheaf Elementary School

District: Flemington-Raritan Regional School District

Grades: K-4

Score: 93.8

Percentile: 100th

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12. Biotechnology High School

District: Monmouth County Vocational School District

Grades: 9-12

Score: 94.6

Percentile: 98th

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11. Academy For Performing Arts

District: Union County Vocational Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 94.9

Percentile: 98th

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9. Academy of Allied Health and Sciences (tie)

District: Monmouth County Vocational School District

Grades: 9-12

Score: 95.1

Percentile: 99th

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9. Upper School (tie)

District: Englewood Cliffs Public Schools

Grades: 3-8

Score: 95.1

Percentile: 100th

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7. Woodrow Wilson Elementary School (tie)

District: Union City Public Schools

Grades: 1-8

Score: 95.3

Percentile: 100th

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7. Union County Magnet High School (tie)

District: Union County Vocational Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 95.3

Percentile: 99th

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6. Academy For Allied Health Sciences

District: Union County Vocational Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 95.8

Percentile: 99th

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5. Classical Academy Charter School

District: N/A

Grades: 6-8

Score: 95.9

Percentile: 100th

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4. Bergen County Technical High School - Teterboro

District: Bergen County Technical Schools

Grades: 9-12

Score: 96.4

Percentile: 99

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3. Communications High School

District: Monmouth County Vocational School District

Grades: 9-12

Score: 96.5

Percentile: 100th

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2. Merritt Memorial Elementary School

District: Cresskill Public Schools

Grades: K-5

Score: 97.4

Percentile: 100th

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(Dakota Santiago | For The Jersey Journal)

1. Dr. Ronald McNair High School

District: Jersey City

Grades: 9-12

Score: 97.5

Percentile: 100th

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How the ratings were calculated

Schools were scored on a several factors, including many required by the federal government. Here's what counted:

High schools

English proficiency: 17.5 percent

Math proficiency: 17.5 percent

Four-year graduation rate: 25 percent

Five-year graduation rate: 25 percent

Chronic absenteeism: 15 percent

Elementary and middle schools

English proficiency: 17.5 percent

Math proficiency: 17.5 percent

English growth: 25 percent

Math growth: 25 percent

Chronic absenteeism: 15 percent

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Editor's note: This list reflects the highest scores achieved by all schools. However, scores for elementary and middle schools are rated using different criteria than high schools.

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More about N.J. schools

The 50 N.J. school districts paying their teachers the most

These are N.J.'s top 25 high schools, U.S. News says

The ultimate N.J. high school yearbook

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Carla Astudillo may be reached at castudillo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @carla_astudi. Find her on Facebook.

Adam Clark may be reached at adam_clark@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on twitter at @realAdamClark. Find NJ.com on Facebook

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