E.S.M.T- I.S. 190

Both ELA (36.8%) and Math (38.9%) proficiency sit below the district 12 averages of roughly 44.6% and 43.3%, and the school's overall quality score of 1.51/4 is also below the district average of 1.76/4. The story behind the numbers, though, is genuinely encouraging: ELA proficiency climbed from 17.3% in 2016 to 41.6% in 2024 before pulling back slightly in 2025, while Math rose from 15.8% to 45.9% over the same stretch — a near-tripling of Math proficiency in eight years. Grade 8 ELA at 45.8% is notably stronger than grades 6 (31.3%) and 7 (29.8%), suggesting students who stay through the full middle school cycle tend to leave better prepared. The slight 2025 dip in both subjects is worth watching, but the multi-year trend is firmly upward.

The day-to-day feel here is unusually warm for a high-needs middle school: 99% of parents say they trust the principal, 98% trust their child's teacher, and 96% of teachers rate their colleagues' instruction quality positively. Teacher-principal trust at 96% signals a faculty that feels supported by leadership, not just supervised. Discipline has followed a striking arc — from 6 suspensions in 2021-22 to 1 in 2022-23 to zero in 2023-24, well below the district average suspension rate of about 0.42% — pointing to a real investment in restorative practices rather than punitive responses. The one major warning sign is chronic absenteeism at 56.8%, meaning more than half of students missed enough school days to be flagged, and overall attendance at 87.2% runs about 3 points below the district average.

Roughly 69% of students identify as Hispanic and 28% as Black, with 2% White and virtually no Asian enrollment, reflecting the demographic makeup of the surrounding Crotona Park East neighborhood. The student body carries significant need: an economic need index of 93.9% (out of 100), 23% of students with IEPs, and ELL Support listed as an active program given the large share of Hispanic families. The diversity index of 41% is on the lower side for the city, meaning students experience relatively little racial or ethnic mix within the building.

Crotona Park East is a working-class, heavily renter section of the Bronx where about 28.5% of residents live below the poverty line and the median household income sits near $41,400. Only about 9.6% of households own their homes, so most families in the school zone are renters, and just 15.1% of households include children — meaning the school draws from a broader area than its immediate blocks. The adult educational attainment rate of 14.7% with a bachelor's degree is below the citywide norm, and the median home value near $599K reflects the Bronx market more than any luxury signal.

The school is reachable by the 2 and 5 trains at 174 St (about a 6-minute walk) and Freeman St (about a 9-minute walk), with the 6 train at Whitlock Av about a 16-minute walk away. Most families likely arrive on foot or by bus from surrounding blocks.