Harlem Prep Charter School

ELA proficiency of 50.2% is right at the district average of about 50%, and represents a substantial improvement from 30.1% in 2016 — the school has effectively doubled its reading performance over nine years. Math tells a different story: 39.2% proficiency sits roughly 6 percentage points below the district average of 45.2%, and the trajectory has been bumpy, with a low of 20% in 2022 and no clear upward trend. Science proficiency is 54.2%. The grade-level breakdown reveals striking variation — Grade 4 ELA is just 31.6% and math a striking 15.8%, while Grade 8 students hit 55.3% in ELA and 52% in math, suggesting older students are better prepared but incoming middle-schoolers are struggling. The overall school score of 1.79 out of 4 sits just below the district average of 1.90.

This is the area where the data raises the most questions. Attendance is 81.4% — about 6 percentage points below the district average of 87.7% — and chronic absenteeism sits at 43.3%, meaning more than two in five students miss enough school to be flagged. Parent satisfaction is 65.8%, well below the district's 91%, and teacher-reported instruction quality is 65.2% compared to 87.3% districtwide. It's worth noting the family survey response rate was effectively zero (just 2 responses), so the parent voice in the official data is thin — which itself is a signal. The picture that emerges is a school where adults on the ground are less confident than at peer schools, and where getting kids in the door consistently is a daily challenge.

The student body is 59% Black and 37% Hispanic, closely mirroring the surrounding East Harlem neighborhood. The school serves a population with very high economic need — an index of 88.7 — and 20% of students have IEPs, well above typical rates. About a third of neighborhood households live in poverty and median income is around $36,700, so most families here are working with limited resources. The diversity index of 48% is relatively low, reflecting the school's fairly homogeneous demographic mix.

East Harlem (North) is a working-class neighborhood where roughly a third of residents live below the poverty line, median household income is about $36,700, and only about 11% of households include children. Educational attainment is mixed, with about 30% of adults holding a bachelor's degree. Homeownership is just 8%, with a median home value of $676,000 — a sign of how much rental pressure and gentrification have reshaped the area even as income levels remain modest. It's a transit-accessible, dense urban neighborhood shaped by its history as a Latino and Black cultural hub in Manhattan.

The 125 St station (4, 5, 6 trains) is about a 5-minute walk, making it the most convenient option. The 116 St (6) stop is roughly 8 minutes away, and 110 St (6) is about 14 minutes on foot.