At a Glance
A small middle school in Greenpoint on a steep academic upswing, where families are deeply engaged and suspensions have effectively vanished.
Best suited for
Families who want a small, tight-knit middle school with strong parent voice, a calm disciplinary climate, and a clear academic improvement story — and who are comfortable with scores still climbing rather than already at the top. Less suited for families seeking elite academic placement right out of the gate or those who prioritize extensive PTA-funded enrichment.
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
- Zero suspensions in 2023-24, down from 9 in 2021-22 — a remarkable climate turnaround
- Parent trust scores at 98-99% with a 96% survey response rate — one of the most engaged parent bodies in the district
- Program richness score of 100 out of 100, offering Robotics, Debate, Specialized High School Test Prep, Chess, and Urban Advantage science partnerships
- ELA proficiency more than doubled from 23.2% in 2016 to 48.2% in 2025 — one of the steepest improvement curves in the district
Things to consider
- Test scores still trail district averages by 14 points in ELA and 18 points in math — families shouldn't expect top-quartile academics yet
- Chronic absenteeism at 55.7% is high and may affect classroom continuity
- Grade 8 math proficiency drops sharply to 26.8%, suggesting students may need extra support heading into high school
- 36% of students have IEPs — a high-needs population that means more individualized attention but also more crowded special education caseloads
- PTA fundraising is only about $10 per student versus a district average of $123 — a thin supplemental budget for extras
- Teacher-principal trust at 77% lags notably behind parent-principal trust — worth asking staff about directly on a tour
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 14
John Ericsson sits in District 14 alongside several high-scoring Success Academy charter campuses and a few solid zoned options. Its program richness score of 100 ties for the top in the peer set, and its recent academic trajectory stands apart — but its overall 1.79 out of 4 score places it below the district average of 2.44. As an unscreened public option with strong parent engagement and a clear improvement story, it offers a different value proposition than the higher-scoring charters in the area.
Academics
Test scores sit below district averages — 48.2% in ELA versus the district's 62.4%, and 41.3% in math versus 59.5% — but the trajectory is the more interesting story. ELA proficiency has climbed from 23.2% in 2016 to 48.2% in 2025, and math has gone from 14.4% to 41.3% over the same period. That kind of sustained, multi-year improvement is genuinely rare. Within the school, 7th graders outperform 6th and 8th graders in math (65.9% versus 36.6% and 26.8% respectively), and the overall 1.79 out of 4 score places the school below the district average of 2.44. Science proficiency at 55.6% is a relative bright spot.
Culture
The day-to-day culture here leans calm and family-driven. Zero suspensions in 2023-24 is the headline — down from 9 just two years earlier — and parent trust scores are among the highest you'll find (98% parent-teacher trust, 99% parent-principal trust). Teacher ratings of instruction quality are solid at 93%, slightly above the district average of 92.8%. The one notable tension: teacher-principal trust sits at 77%, well below the parent-principal trust number — worth asking about on a tour. Attendance is the real concern here, at 86.9% it sits about 2 points below the district average, and chronic absenteeism affects more than half of all students.
Community
The student body is 63% Hispanic, 26% Black, 7% White, and 3% Asian — a predominantly working-class and immigrant community that doesn't reflect the broader Greenpoint neighborhood, which is one of Brooklyn's wealthiest areas with a median household income over $126,000. The school's economic need index of 85.6 confirms that most families here are far from affluent, and 36% of students have IEPs, a notably high share. The diversity index of 55% reflects a student body dominated by one or two racial groups rather than evenly mixed.
Neighborhood
Greenpoint is one of Brooklyn's most affluent and rapidly changing neighborhoods, with a median household income of $126,127, a bachelor's-or-higher rate of 64.8%, and a median home value over $1.3 million. Only 12.6% of households have children, well below the city average — this is a neighborhood of young professionals and longtime families more than young kids. The school sits in a quieter pocket of the area, and the student body draws from a wider catchment than just the immediate blocks.
Three subway options within a 9-minute walk: the G train at Nassau Avenue, and the L train at both Lorimer Street and Graham Avenue.
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) · 149 families responded (96% rate)
Programs & Activities
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
PTA Fundraising
Source: DOE Local Law 171 disclosure
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. John Ericsson Middle School 126 admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- The John Ericsson Magnet School for Environmental Engineering (M.S. 126)Unscreened105 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
Open house
Sat, Nov 7, · 10:00 AM · In person
Open house
Thu, Nov 19, · 3:30 PM · In person
Open house
Sat, Nov 21, · 10:00 AM · In person
Open house
Thu, Dec 3, · 3:30 PM · In person
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is John Ericsson Middle School 126 a good school?
- On Motley, John Ericsson Middle School 126 earns an overall rating of 45/100 — 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 14 average.
- What grades does John Ericsson Middle School 126 serve?
- John Ericsson Middle School 126 serves grades 6 to 8.
- How do students get into John Ericsson Middle School 126?
- John Ericsson Middle School 126 admits by application through a random lottery, with no academic screen.
- Is John Ericsson Middle School 126 public, charter, or private?
- John Ericsson Middle School 126 is a public school in NYC Community School District 14.
- What neighborhood is John Ericsson Middle School 126 in?
- John Ericsson Middle School 126 is in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.