At a Glance
A small Morris Heights middle school on a striking academic upswing, anchored by unusually strong parent-principal trust.
Best suited for
Families in or near Morris Heights who want a small middle school with strong parent engagement, an unusually broad menu of electives, and a leadership team that's clearly moving the needle on academics — and who are willing to track the chronic absenteeism data as their child settles in.
Overall Rating
Rating = average of NY State ELA + math proficiency, grades 3–8
Bands are Motley's thresholds on a 0–100 scale, not New York State performance levels.
How this is scored→What stands out
- Math proficiency has nearly tripled since 2016, from 12.5% to 41.9%, the most dramatic improvement story in the data.
- A program richness score of 100 out of 100 — coding, Lego Robotics, videography, web design, ASL, and Regents Living Environment are unusual offerings for a 323-student middle school.
- Parent-principal trust sits at 96%, with 93% of families completing the survey — a sign of real engagement, not just goodwill.
- Specialized High School test prep and Algebra I for eighth graders signal a college-prep orientation at the middle school level.
- Peer Mediation and a Step Team suggest the school invests in social-emotional programming alongside academics.
Things to consider
- Chronic absenteeism at 70.6% is striking and worth asking the school about directly — even solid daily attendance can mask kids missing 10%+ of the year.
- ELA and math proficiency remain below the district average; the trend is positive, but the school isn't there yet.
- The suspension rate of 2% is meaningfully higher than the district average of 0.4%, and the most recent year saw an uptick from zero.
- With only 323 students, the school may have fewer sports teams and elective sections than larger middle schools.
- The neighborhood faces real economic pressure — families should think about after-school logistics and commute, though the subway access here is genuinely strong.
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 9
Within District 9, I.S. 232 sits below the district average on the overall quality score (1.57 vs. 1.79) and trails most of its listed peer schools, which are mostly charter schools. However, the trajectory of improvement is steeper than most peers, and the parent engagement numbers beat the district averages on several measures.
Academics
I.S. 232's test scores are below the District 9 average right now (36.5% ELA vs. 44.8% district; 41.9% math vs. 44.7% district), but the multi-year arc is the more honest story. Math proficiency has climbed from 12.5% in 2016 to 41.9% in 2025 — nearly catching the district average after years far behind it. ELA has more than doubled from 16.5% to 36.5% over the same span. Science proficiency stands at 52%, a relative bright spot. The school's overall score of 1.57 out of 4 is below the district average of 1.79, but it represents substantial year-over-year gains rather than stagnation.
Culture
Daily attendance is solid at 91.1%, slightly above the district average, but a chronic absenteeism rate of 70.6% means roughly seven in ten students are missing too many days — that's the figure parents should ask about. On the survey side, the climate reads warm and trusting: 96% of parents trust the principal, 93% rate teacher instruction as high quality, and the family survey response rate of 93% suggests families are engaged. Discipline has been light overall — only seven suspensions last year, though that was an uptick from zero the prior year, worth watching.
Community
I.S. 232's student body is 80% Hispanic and 19% Black, mirroring the surrounding neighborhood where most households earn around $32,000 a year and nearly 40% live below the poverty line. Twenty-five percent of students have IEPs, and the school offers ELL support, reflecting the linguistic and learning diversity of the area. The diversity index of 30% reflects a fairly homogeneous community — predominantly Latino, with a substantial Black minority — rather than the city's broader mixing.
Neighborhood
I.S. 232 sits in the University Heights-Morris Heights area of the Bronx, a working-class neighborhood where median household income hovers around $32,000 and only 6.5% of residents own their homes — most families rent. Just 14% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, and 37% of residents live below the poverty line, but 14% of households include children, so this is genuinely a family neighborhood despite the economic pressures.
The school is well-served by transit: the 4 train at 176 St is about a four-minute walk, with the 4 at Mt Eden Av about seven minutes and the B and D at 174-175 Sts about eight minutes away.
Academic Performance
ELA Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State ELA exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Math Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Math exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Science Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Science exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Historical Trends
The dashed line marks 2023, when New York changed its grades 3–8 state tests. Scores before and after it aren’t directly comparable.
2020–2021 data unavailable due to COVID-19
Source: NYC DOE School Quality Reports
Survey Results
NYC School Survey (2025) · 227 families responded (93% rate)
Programs & Activities
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Discipline
NYSED Student & Educator Database (2023-24)
Economic Need & Special Populations
How to get in, step by step
Middle school (6th grade)
Middle school is one citywide application, made in 5th grade. I.S. 232 admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- The Alexander Macomb School I.S. 232Unscreened127 seats
Middle school application
- Opened
- Wed, Oct 14
- Closes
- Fri, Dec 11
- Offers
- Wed, Apr 7
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the middle school application, in 5th grade.
- 2Unscreened programs fill by random lottery among the families who rank them.
- 3Rank programs in true preference order — the match places your child in the highest-ranked one that offers a seat.
Open houses and tours
We haven’t seen open-house dates for this school yet.
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is I.S. 232 a good school?
- On Motley, I.S. 232 earns an overall rating of 39/100 — the average of the school's New York State ELA and math proficiency, grades 3–8, shown out of 100. Its state test results run below the District 9 average.
- What grades does I.S. 232 serve?
- I.S. 232 serves grades 6 to 8.
- How do students get into I.S. 232?
- I.S. 232 admits by application through a random lottery, with no academic screen.
- Is I.S. 232 public, charter, or private?
- I.S. 232 is a public school in NYC Community School District 9.
- What neighborhood is I.S. 232 in?
- I.S. 232 is in University Heights (South)-Morris Heights, Bronx.