I.S. 125 Thom J. McCann Woodside

ELA proficiency of 42.8% and math proficiency of 40.9% both fall well below the District 24 averages of 51.1% and 54.8%, and science proficiency at 28.2% is the weakest signal in the data. The historical arc tells a clear story: scores climbed steadily from 2016 (35% ELA, 39% math) through 2019, when ELA peaked at 51.8% and math hit 56.1%, then dropped sharply post-pandemic — math bottomed at 36.8% in 2022 before partially recovering. The 2025 figures mark the second consecutive year of decline and sit noticeably below the pre-2020 highs, suggesting the school is still finding its footing rather than holding ground.

The day-to-day climate looks healthier than the test scores suggest. Parent satisfaction (93%) tracks closely with the district, parent-teacher trust hits 95%, and teachers rate instruction quality at 94% — these are quietly strong numbers for a school where proficiency is sliding. Attendance at 92.2% is essentially at the district average. But two flags stand out: chronic absenteeism at 73.1% means roughly three out of four students miss 10% or more of the school year, which alone can drag down proficiency; and suspensions jumped from 4 in each of the prior two years to 17 in 2023-24 — still a low 1% rate, but a noticeable uptick worth watching.

The student body is 59% Hispanic and 32% Asian, with smaller Black, White, and multiracial populations — a diversity index of 54%. About three-quarters of students qualify for economic need, and 17% have IEPs, with ELL support offered as a structured program. The surrounding neighborhood is more solidly middle-income than the school demographics alone suggest: median household income sits around $78,000 and the poverty rate is 12%, which means a real range of families attend — some coming from households comfortably above the city median, others stretching to get by.

Sunnyside is a dense, mixed-immigrant stretch of western Queens where roughly 22% of households own their homes and most families rent, with a median home value around $660,000 reflecting the limited ownership stock. About 17% of households have children, so neighbors include a fair number of young professionals and longtime immigrant households alongside families with school-age kids. The educational attainment picture is mixed — fewer than half of adults here hold a bachelor's degree — but the cultural mix and family-friendly density make it a natural middle-school catchment.

The 7 train runs right through the neighborhood — 46 St-Bliss St is about a 4-minute walk from the school, with 40 St-Lowery St around 8 minutes and 52 St around 9 minutes, so most families can realistically get to school without a car.