High School of Sports Management

On state tests, this school lands in a mixed spot. Its ELA proficiency rate of 67% sits above the District 21 average of 60%, suggesting reading skills are solid, but math proficiency at 61% comes in just under the district's 63% — so neither subject is leading the pack. The overall 2-out-of-4 quality rating also sits below the district average of about 2.46, meaning families shouldn't expect a top-quartile academic experience. The program mix tilts heavily toward athletics — 17 different sports — with a smaller academic core of AP courses and ELL support. The trend reads as stable rather than gaining momentum.

Parents give the school a thumbs up: 91% satisfaction, 92% trust in teachers, and 96% trust in the principal, and zero suspensions is genuinely unusual for a Brooklyn high school. Teachers, though, are telling a different story — only 56% trust the principal, well below the parent numbers, and teacher-rated instruction quality (89%) trails the district average of about 93%. Teacher-reported safety is excellent at 100%. Attendance is the soft spot: at 85.2%, it's well below the district's 91.2%, with 38% of students chronically absent, which is high enough to affect daily classroom continuity. The day-to-day feel seems to be: students feel safe and families feel welcomed, but there's staff-level friction with leadership worth asking about on a tour.

The student body closely mirrors the neighborhood around it. Forty-two percent Hispanic, 21% Black, 18% Asian, 16% White, with a diversity index of 79% — a genuinely mixed population. The economic need index of 87.8 signals that most students come from lower-income households, and 24% have IEPs, which is meaningfully above the city average. The match between the school and its surroundings is tight — this is a community school, not a destination draw from across the borough.

Gravesend is a working-class, family-oriented slice of southern Brooklyn with deep roots and a steady immigrant presence. Median household income sits around $58,000 and about a fifth of residents live below the poverty line, while a 37% homeownership rate and a $630,000 median home value point to a community with long-term roots but real housing pressure. About a third of adults have a bachelor's degree, and roughly 18% of households include kids. The school sits in the southern part of the neighborhood.

Three subway options serve the school: 25 Av and Bay 50 St on the D line are each about a seven-minute walk, and 86 St on the N is roughly nine minutes away. For most Gravesend families, the commute is doable on foot or with a short bus connection.