I.S. 204 Oliver W. Holmes

Test scores have climbed substantially over the past decade — from 26% ELA and 28% math in 2016 to 42% and 40% today — but they still sit well below the district averages of roughly 61% ELA and 62% math. The story is one of real progress that hasn't yet caught up. ELA peaked at about 50% in 2022 before pulling back to 42%, while math has been steadier, hovering in the high 30s to low 40s over the last few years. Science proficiency at 44% is closer to the school's own averages. Seventh-graders post the strongest math numbers (45%), while sixth-graders tend to come in behind their older peers — a common pattern in schools where students are still adjusting after elementary.

The day-to-day trust signals here are unusually strong: 96% of parents feel the school is responsive, 97% trust their child's teacher, and 99% of teachers rate their own instruction quality positively — figures that exceed the district average. With 275 family survey responses out of a school of under 400, parents are clearly engaged. But that warmth lives alongside some tough numbers. Chronic absenteeism at 62% is striking (and runs above 80% for White and Asian students, while sitting closer to 46–58% for Black and Hispanic students), and suspensions have risen year over year — from 5 in 2021–22 to 16 in 2023–24, putting the suspension rate at 4%, well above the district's 0.3%. Attendance at 89.8% is below the district's 92.4%. In short: families love the school and show up for it; getting every student through the door every day, and keeping discipline trends contained, is the active work.

The student body is 59% Hispanic, 17% Asian, 14% Black, and 9% White, with an economic need index of 84 — meaning most students come from households with limited resources. The school also serves a notable share of students with IEPs (26%) and provides ELL support. By contrast, the surrounding census tract skews more toward renters than homeowners (16% homeownership) with a mix of incomes and education levels; about 39% of area adults hold a bachelor's degree. Together they paint a portrait of a school serving a predominantly working-class, Hispanic-majority student body in a neighborhood that, in census terms, leans young and mixed-income rather than family-dense.

The Queensbridge-Ravenswood-Dutch Kills area is one of western Queens' most rapidly evolving neighborhoods, with median household income around $70,500, a 19% poverty rate, and a strikingly renter-heavy housing market. Just one in six households owns their home, and only about one in ten has children at home — a number that reflects the area's popularity with younger professionals as much as it does local family formation. Residents are fairly well-educated by neighborhood standards (about 39% with a bachelor's degree), and the median home value of roughly $841,000 reflects the heavy development pressure on nearby Long Island City.

The school is well-served by transit: the 36 Av (N, W) stop is about a 4-minute walk, 39 Av-Dutch Kills (N, W) about 5 minutes, and 36 St (M, R) about 8 minutes — enough options that most families won't need a car.