The Paterson Public Schools (PPS) is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Paterson, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Paterson Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification , Paterson Public Schools. Accessed March 28, 2022. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades pre-kindergarten through twelve in the Paterson School District. Composition: The Paterson School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of the City of Paterson." The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Abbott v. BurkeWhat We Do: History, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022. "In 1998, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in the Abbott v. Burke case that the State must provide 100 percent funding for all school renovation and construction projects in special-needs school districts. According to the Court, aging, unsafe and overcrowded buildings prevented children from receiving the "thorough and efficient" education required under the New Jersey Constitution.... Full funding for approved projects was authorized for the 31 special-needs districts, known as 'Abbott Districts'." which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority.What We Do, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.SDA Districts, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.

As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of 43 schools, had an enrollment of 24,692 students and 1,762.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.0:1.District information for Paterson Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.

Among the 594 students who took the SAT in 2013, the mean combined score was 1120 and there were 19 students (3.2% of those taking the exam) who achieved the combined score of 1550 that the College Board considers an indicator of college readiness, a decline from the 26 students (4.3%) who achieved the standard the previous year.Malinconico, Joe. "Latest SAT results: Number of Paterson 'college-ready' students drops to 19", Paterson Press, October 14, 2014. Accessed December 11, 2014. "A report released by the school district last week showed 19 of the 594 Paterson students who took the SATs this year had scores that met the 'college-ready' criteria established by the College Board, which conducts the standardized tests."Laine, Tamara. , WWOR-TV, December 1, 2014. Accessed December 1, 2014. "In Paterson, New Jersey only 19 kids who took the SAT's are considered college ready. This means that they scored at least a 1500 out of 2400 on the standardized test, and this number is truly shocking considering how large the school district is."

District enrollment in Paterson surged at the start of the 2015–16 school year, creating a public school enrollment of 700 students higher than expected and putting the school district in a situation of needing to hire teachers rapidly not long after the district had laid off 300 positions.Malinconico, Joe. "Months after layoffs, unexpected enrollment puts Paterson school district in hiring scramble", The Record, September 17, 2015. Accessed September 17, 2015. "Just months after imposing more than 300 layoffs, the city school district is scrambling to hire dozens of extra teachers to handle an unexpected enrollment increase of about 700 students.... But far more immigrants have moved into Paterson than were expected, the superintendent said."

History The district had been one of two districts in New Jersey (along with Newark Public Schools) under "state intervention", which authorizes the commissioner of education to intervene in governance of a local public school district (and to intervene in the areas of instruction and program, operations, personnel, and fiscal management) if the commissioner has determined that a school district failed or was unable to take corrective actions necessary to establish a thorough and efficient system of education.Governance and Urban School Improvement: Lessons for New Jersey From Nine Cities , pp. 65–68, Institute on Education Law and Policy, Rutgers–Newark, October 2010. Accessed September 10, 2014. Initiated in 1991 as part of an effort to improve academic performance in the district and lasting for three decades, state control of the district ended in January 2021.Clark, Adam. "N.J. gives school district local control after 30 years", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, January 6, 2021. Accessed September 12, 2025. "New Jersey’s takeover of Paterson Public Schools is officially over, three decades after the state seized control of the troubled district. The state Board of Education voted Wednesday to fully return local control to the city school board. The vote, mostly a formality, concludes a two-year transition to local control that began in 2018.... The state took over the struggling district in 1991, seeking to turn around student performance and low graduation rates."

Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine announced in March 2009 that he was recommending the appointment of Donnie W. Evans as the district's superintendent, with the State Board of Education ratifying the nomination of Evans by Lucille Davy, Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education."Governor Corzine Announces New Paterson Superintendent", Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine, press release dated March 31, 2009. Accessed January 27, 2015. "During a visit to PANTHER Academy, Governor Jon S. Corzine today announced the recommendation of Dr. Donnie W. Evans as Paterson's new Superintendent of Schools.... Education Commissioner Lucille Davy will formally propose Dr. Evan's appointment to the State Board of Education. At that time, the State Board of Education will cast a vote to make the Evans appointment official."

The district had been classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "A", the lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 1, 2024.

Schools Schools in the district (with 2023–24 enrollment data from the National Center for Education StatisticsSchool Data for the Paterson Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.) are:School, Paterson Public Schools. Accessed September 12, 2025.2024–25 Public School Directory, Passaic County, New Jersey. Accessed March 1, 2024.School Performance Reports for the Paterson Public School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed July 1, 2025.New Jersey School Directory for the Paterson Public Schools, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024. Early Learning Centers Anna Iandoli Early Learning Center (PK; 90 students) Elementary Schools Dale Avenue School (PK-2; 246 students; 25 teachers) Edward W. Kilpatrick School (PK-3; 300 students; 28 teachers) Full Service Community School / School 15 (PK-5; 545 students; 47 teachers) School 27 (PK-5; 643 students; 49 teachers) Charles J. Riley / School 9 (PK-8; 726 students; 62 teachers) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Educational Complex (PK-8; 505 students; 42.5 teachers) School 16 (PK-8; 840 students; 56 teachers) School 21 (PK-8; 642 students; 42.5 teachers) Fine & Performing Arts Program / School 24 (PK-8; 651 students; 61.5 teachers) School 25 (PK-8; 540 students; 435 teachers) School 26 (PK-8; 479 students; 31 teachers) School 28 (PK-8; 469 students; 38.5 teachers) School 19 (K-4; 314 students; 24 teachers) Roberto Clemente School (K-5; 267 students; 20.5 teachers) Renaissance One School of Humanities / School 1 (K-5; 216 students; 21 teachers) School 5 (K-5; 763 students; 58 teachers) School 7 (K-5; 286 students; 23 teachers) Alexander Hamilton Academy (K-8; 488 students; 32 teachers) Norman S. Weir School (K-8; 270 students; 23 teachers) School 2 (K-8; 511 students; 41 teachers) School 3 (K-8; 218 students; 28 teachers) School 8 (K-8; 401 students; 34 teachers) School 10 (K-8; 455 students; 32 teachers) School 12 (K-8; 482 students; 41 teachers) School 13 (K-8; 484 students; 35 teachers) School 20 (K-8; 345 students; 33 teachers) Senator Frank Lautenberg School / School 6 (K-8; 628 students; 32 teachers) Rev. Dr. Frank Napier Jr. School of Technology / School 4 (1–8; 502 students; 37.5 teachers) School 18 (1–8; 651 students; 60.5 teachers) Young Men's Academy (3–8; 60 students; 7 teachers) Middle Schools Dr. Hani Awadallah School (6–8; 564 students; 53.5 teachers) Joseph A. Taub School (6–8; 968 students; 54 teachers) New Roberto Clemente School (6–8; 545 students; 52 teachers) High schools Alozno "Tambua" Moody Academy / School 11 (Alternative High School 9–12; 118 students; 23 teachers) Eastside High School (9–12; 2,087 students; 131 teachers) International High School (9–12; 662 students; 50 teachers) John F. Kennedy High School (9–12; 1,794 students; 143 teachers) Newcomers High School (9–12; 82 students; 5 teachers) Paterson P-Tech High School (9–12; 200 students; 14 teachers) Paterson STEAM High School (9–12; 325 students; 26 teachers) Rosa L. Parks School of Fine and Performing Arts (9–12; 257 students; 27 teachers) Students Transitioning and Achieving Real Success (S.T.A.R.S.) (Special Education 9–12; 111 students; 8 teachers)

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:District Administration, Paterson Public Schools. Accessed September 12, 2025.New Jersey School Directory for Passaic County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024. Laurie W. Newell, superintendent of schools June Gray, business administrator

Board of education