Hazel Avenue Elementary School

Hazel Elementary is a fantastic school, a gem in the Valley section of West Orange. Hazel has great teachers and an absolutely outstanding principal who is truly in touch with the community. Parent involvement is improving year after year, as are test scores due to programs implemented by our principal.
—Submitted by a parent

Hazel school is academically strong, diverse in every sense of the word, and has a fantastic parent/family community. Our daughter teacher is smart and witty, and she identifies the individual academic and social needs of each student. The children are thriving in her class. The Principal is a dynamic advocate for the school, the kids, and the teachers, truly a gem in school that sparkles with heart!
—Submitted by a parent

This is a great school with a very dedicated faculty and staff. The PTA works tirelessly and the principal is incredible! What a great community-we are so happy that our son is here. Our school has an extensive gardening program, a wonderful enrichment program, a Wellness Committee, and many more parent/teacher/PTA run programs and all within walking distance of our house!
—Submitted by a parent

I love Hazel Ave. school because the great students, the wonderful teachers and a very enthusiastic principal and hard working PTA.
—Submitted by a parent

This school is a gem. Our new principal is phenominal. He's intelligent, innovative, approachable, and passionate about learning. His energy and commitment have inspired a new wave of parental involvement. Hazel is truly a neighborhood school; everyone walks to and from with their children. My friends in surrounding schools and towns are jealous that we leave our house 5 minutes before school starts, don't have to worry about long lines of cars at pick-up and drop-off, and that the children get to play afterwards with their friends in the playground or field or schoolyard. We also have our own Rainbow Garden, complete with student plantings and an outdoor classroom. For families looking for a vibrant, diverse, foot-friendly community school, this is a great fit.
—Submitted by a parent

I agree with comment that this school is overshadowed by the Gregory school. This school is fabulous!!!. Strong PTA, great administration and a very close knit school community makes this school wonderful. The teachers are dedicated, caring and professional educators. The low rating is not reflective of poor teaching but rather a higher percentage of ESL students that are zoned for this school which negatively impacts the scores.
—Submitted by a parent

Often overshadowed by the popular Gregory school located in the same area, Hazel is an excellent school with caring teachers in a great neighborhoold. Teachers and curriculum is excellent and more importantly the children are happy with ltheir earning environment. Parents are very involved and the principal is dedicated to the success of the school which is evident by the school's recent honor of receiving Blue Ribbon award.
—Submitted by a parent

This school does a very good with the students. They are interested in the children accomplishing their goals. The school works in conjunction with the parents to ensure a productive end result.
—Submitted by a parent

Our only interaction with the school so far has been registering our child for kindergarten, attending the new student orientation and having an impromptu meeting with the principal. In that short amount of time, my husband and I were extremely impressed with the respect and caring that was given to us. Especially since our son won't start there until September. The fact that the principal, Mrs. DeCarlo granted us an unexpected meeting that lasted almost an hour, was truly amazing. She even took notes and made copies of our son's homework so that they can refer to them when trying to make placement decisions over the summer. Not at all what I expected.
—Submitted by Denise G, a parent