American Dream Charter School

ELA proficiency at 42.9% sits well below the district average of 51.3%, and math at 25.6% is less than half the district's 49% — gaps parents should see clearly. The encouraging note is the trajectory: ELA has nearly doubled from 23% in 2016 to 42.9% in 2025, a steady upward climb even if it hasn't caught the district yet. Math is more troubling — it has bounced between roughly 14% and 32% over the same period, ending slightly below where it started in 2016 and with no clear upward trend. Science proficiency at 53% is the school's strongest subject, a useful counterweight to the math picture.

The day-to-day feel at American Dream is defined by two starkly different data points. On the family side, parent satisfaction (95%), trust in teachers (96%), and trust in the principal (96%) all exceed district averages — families feel connected and listened to here. On the engagement side, the picture is much harder: chronic absenteeism is 68.2%, meaning roughly two of every three students miss enough school to be flagged for chronic absence, and teacher-reported safety data isn't reported. Attendance rate of 91.8% looks fine on its face but masks how unevenly students actually show up over a full year.

American Dream's student body is 94% Hispanic and 5% Black, reflecting the predominantly Hispanic fabric of Mott Haven-Port Morris, where the median household income is $29,110 and 40% of residents live below the poverty line. With an economic need index of 91.6 (very high) and 19% of students classified as IEP, the school serves a population facing significant economic and learning challenges. The diversity index of 13% is low, but that's a reflection of the surrounding neighborhood rather than the school's choices — it draws almost entirely from the community around it.

Mott Haven-Port Morris is one of the South Bronx's most densely populated residential neighborhoods, and the families around American Dream largely rent their homes (only 6.1% own) while earning a median household income near $29,000. About 12% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, and 40% of residents live below the poverty line — economic pressures that show up clearly in the school's profile. With only 12% of households containing children, the school serves a relatively concentrated share of the neighborhood's young people.

The 6 train at Brook Avenue is a short three-minute walk, with the Cypress Avenue 6 stop about seven minutes away and the 2/5 at Third Avenue–149th Street roughly ten minutes on foot.