East New York Family Academy

ELA proficiency at 44.3% sits about 4.5 points below the district average of 48.9%, and math at 32.6% is well below the district's 48.2% — a 15-point gap that defines this school's academic profile. The ELA trend is genuinely encouraging: scores climbed from 33.8% in 2016 to 47.1% in 2019, dipped during the pandemic years, and have stabilized in the low-to-mid 40s. Math is more volatile — it spiked to 45.8% in 2019, fell to 19.7% in 2022, bounced around in the 20s, and now sits at 32.6%. By grade, the picture softens: 6th graders post the strongest scores (53.8% ELA, 43.4% math), but 8th-grade math drops to 18.2%, suggesting the transition into higher-level math is where students stall.

The day-to-day culture here looks healthier than the test scores suggest. Teacher-reported trust in the principal sits at 95% and trust in colleagues at 95% — both indicating a staff that feels cohesive. Teacher-rated instructional quality is 99%, nearly 12 points above the district average of 87.9%, which suggests teachers feel well-resourced and supported in their craft. Parent satisfaction is 91% (right at the district average), and parent-principal trust is 96% — meaningfully higher than you'd expect. There are zero suspensions, which is striking for a school where 83.8% of students have high economic need. The cloud here is attendance: 86.6% is below the district's 89.9%, and chronic absenteeism is 50.6% — meaning roughly half the student body misses 10% or more of school days. That's a real barrier to academic growth regardless of how good the teaching is.

The student body is 66% Black and 29% Hispanic, with smaller Asian (3%), White (1%), and multi-racial (1%) populations — a diversity index of 46%, which is lower than the citywide average but reflects the demographics of East New York–New Lots itself, where Black and Hispanic families make up the overwhelming majority of residents. Twenty-four percent of students have IEPs, and the economic need index of 83.8% means most families qualify for free lunch. The family survey drew 134 responses, a reasonable turnout that gives weight to the strong satisfaction numbers.

East New York–New Lots is a working-class Brooklyn neighborhood where median household income sits around $58,087 and 22.6% of residents live below the poverty line. Just 16% of adults have a bachelor's degree, and homeownership is low at 29.3%, with a median home value near $605,545. Only about 10.6% of households include children, which is fairly low and partly reflects the mix of multi-generational households and renters. The neighborhood is family-dense in character, even if the census counts suggest otherwise.

The school is served by the 3 train at three nearby stations: Van Siclen Avenue (about a 7-minute walk), New Lots Avenue (about 8 minutes), and Pennsylvania Avenue (about 10 minutes). All three are on the same line, so families have flexibility in either direction.