ALEXANDER ROBERTSON SCHOOL

A nonsectarian, coeducational elementary school serving pre-K through fifth grade, founded on the idea that children learn best when academics are paired with creativity and character. The curriculum stresses critical thinking, collaboration, and ethical reflection alongside traditional subjects, with dedicated time for the arts, music, and physical education. The school explicitly frames itself as educating the whole child rather than preparing test-takers.

The student body of 43 children reflects one of the most racially balanced private elementary populations in Manhattan, with no single demographic exceeding roughly a third of enrollment. Asian, Black, Hispanic, White, multiracial, and Native American families all sit at the table together — an unusual mix for a tuition-charging school on the Upper West Side. Parents describe the environment as warm and nurturing, and the small size means families tend to know one another well.

The school sits in the heart of the Upper West Side, a well-educated and relatively affluent stretch of Manhattan where four out of five adults hold a bachelor's degree and median household income runs around $152,000. The block has a settled, residential feel, with the usual mix of prewar buildings, family apartments, and small storefronts that defines this stretch of the neighborhood. Local poverty sits below ten percent, which is low even by city standards.

The 96 St station on the C and B lines is essentially at the school's doorstep — about a one-minute walk — with the 103 St (C, B) and 86 St (C, B) stations both within a ten-minute walk as backups.