Step 1. Qualifying

Admission to HEROES Academy is on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis for qualified gifted and talented students.  Applications are processed upon receipt, but please allow up to two weeks for processing.  As part of the application process, students may submit qualifying scores for one of the tests listed below.  Upon admission to HEROES Academy, all students must take the placement test for class placement purposes. 

Test	Guidelines
NWEA MAP Test Students may take the NWEA MAP test at HEROES as part of the HEROES Academic Evaluation & Placement Test.	A score in at least the 80th percentile in BOTH mathematics and reading.  Test results must be from the current academic year.
Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children IV Read more about the WISC-V here.	A minimum standard score of 130 or higher on the General Ability Index (GAI) or Full Scale OR A minimum standard score of 130 on the Nonverbal section AND at least one of the following: Verbal Verbal Comprehension Fluid Reasoning
Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities	A standard score of 130 or higher
CogAT For a list of public schools in NJ that administer the CogAT, click here.	An age percentile rank of at least the 80th percentile on both the Verbal and Quantitative
​Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale	​A minimum standard score of 130 or higher on BOTH the Verbal and Nonverbal sections

Accepted tests must:

• Include an official report.  Applicants may submit an official score report electronically to info@njgifted.org with the subject "Student Name - Application." Please include your full name, your child's full name, your child's date of birth, and a phone number that we can reach you at.
• All tests must have been administered when the applicant was at least 5 years of age.
• Scores must meet or exceed the score guidelines listed above.  

Step 2.  Academic Evaluation

HEROES places students into classes based on tested math and reading ability.  We administer a rigorous academic evaluation to all applicants that allows us to determine the best-fit classes for each student.  Students without qualifying test scores may use NWEA MAP scores from our academic evaluation for qualification purposes.  

Our academic evaluation consists of four sections:

• NWEA MAP Mathematics 
• NWEA MAP Reading 
• Paper-Pencil Math Challenge Exam based on NWEA-MAP Math score  
• Paper-Pencil Writing Placement based on NWEA-MAP Reading scores​

Students may submit NWEA MAP scores from the current academic year.  These students will be not be required to take the NWEA MAP test again, but they will still need to take the paper-pencil math and writing placement exams.  

We highly recommend completing our academic evaluation as soon as possible.  We can use the summer months to fill in "learning holes" to place students into better fitting classes.  

Schedule now

Step 3. Registration

Upon completing the placement test, HEROES Academy will provide families with course recommendations for the student.  The majority of classes at HEROES start in September; however, HEROES accepts students into classes on a rolling basis based on placement test results.  

View the schedule for the upcoming school year here.