M.S. 319 - Maria Teresa

ELA proficiency at 27.4% trails the district average of 47% by a wide margin, and Science at 40.9% is similarly modest — but the math story is genuinely unusual. Math proficiency has climbed from 14.1% in 2016 to 49.8% in 2025, a near-quadrupling that brings the school within striking distance of the district's 52%. By 8th grade, 57% of students hit proficiency in math, suggesting the gains compound as students mature here. The overall score of 1.54 out of 4 still sits below the district's 1.98, but the trajectory — especially in math — points firmly up.

The climate numbers tell two very different stories. On the trust side: 97% parent satisfaction, 99% parent-teacher trust, and a perfect 100% teacher-reported instruction quality — among the highest you'll find anywhere in the district, suggesting families and staff genuinely believe in what's happening here. On the day-to-day side: chronic absenteeism is 70.7%, meaning roughly seven in ten students miss enough school to be flagged, and suspensions have climbed from 1 in 2021-22 to 12 in 2023-24 (a 5% rate, well above the district's 0.4%). Teachers clearly trust leadership and each other, but getting students in the door and keeping the building orderly remains the central challenge.

The student body is 95% Hispanic with an economic need index of 88.7 — among the highest in the district — and 28% of students have IEPs. With 275 students total, this is a notably small middle school, which helps explain the unusually high family survey response rate of 80%: families know each other. The Washington Heights neighborhood around it is also overwhelmingly Hispanic and working-class, with a 22% poverty rate and a median household income around $56,000, so most students are attending their local school rather than commuting in from elsewhere.

Southern Washington Heights is a working-class, renter-dominated neighborhood — only 8% of households own their homes, and median household income sits near $56,000 — yet the median home value of $750,000 tells the story of a neighborhood where prices have raced well ahead of what most residents actually earn. About a third of adults hold a bachelor's degree, and just 9% of households have children, which means families with school-age kids are a visible minority in a neighborhood shaped more by working adults and recent immigrants. Getting around is easy by subway, with multiple lines converging just a few blocks from the school.

Families can reach the school via the A or C at 168 St (about a 5-minute walk) or the 1 at 168 St-Washington Hts (also about a 5-minute walk), with the C at 163 St-Amsterdam Av roughly 7 minutes away on foot.