At a Glance
A Williamsbridge-Olinville middle school on a clear upward trajectory, with climbing test scores shadowed by stubborn attendance and discipline challenges.
Best suited for
A family rooted in or near Williamsbridge-Olinville who wants their child in a small, unscreened, genuinely diverse middle school where the academic trajectory is clearly upward and where they intend to be highly engaged with attendance and school life.
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
- Test scores have more than doubled in ELA and more than quadrupled in math since 2016, marking one of the steeper upward trajectories in District 11.
- Accelerated/Honors coursework is offered even though most students arrive below grade level — a genuine stretch opportunity that runs against the neighborhood's profile.
- Program richness score is 100/100, with unusually broad offerings that include Lego Robotics, Step, Cooking, Piano, Peer Mediation, and Saturday Academy.
- Parent trust scores (95% with teachers, 96% with the principal) are remarkably high, though the 6% response rate means this is a snapshot of the most engaged families.
- The school's unscreened admissions and 26% IEP enrollment make it a true neighborhood catch-all with a real commitment to inclusion.
Things to consider
- ELA and math proficiency are roughly 20 percentage points below the district average, even with recent gains.
- Chronic absenteeism at 54% means many classmates are missing substantial school, which affects the daily rhythm of the classroom.
- The suspension rate of 5% runs about ten times the district average, and suspensions ticked up last year after two years of decline.
- The 6% family survey response rate means school climate data reflects a narrow slice of the parent body.
- With most families relying on the 2/5 trains, the commute works best for households already living in or near Williamsbridge-Olinville.
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 11
District 11's top performers are charter schools — Icahn Charter 4, Bronx Charter for Excellence 2 and 3 — and this school sits well below the district average on overall score (1.29 vs 2.25), though its year-over-year gains are among the steepest in the district.
Academics
ELA proficiency at 37% and math at 27% sit well below the district averages of 57% and 56% respectively, but the trajectory is the more interesting story — ELA has roughly doubled since 2016 (from 16%) and math has more than quadrupled (from 5%), with especially sharp gains since 2022. The school also offers Accelerated/Honors coursework, which is uncommon for a school where most students enter below grade level, and 8th-grade ELA at 44% is the strongest of the three grades.
Culture
Parents who respond to surveys give remarkably high marks (95% parent-teacher trust, 96% parent-principal trust, 88% satisfaction), but only 6% of families answered, so those numbers reflect a small, engaged subset rather than the full parent body. Chronic absenteeism runs at 54% — more than half of students miss enough school to qualify — and the 5% suspension rate is roughly ten times the district average. Total suspensions rose from 10 in 2022-23 to 20 in 2023-24 after two prior years of decline, a worrying uptick.
Community
The student body is 48% Black and 45% Hispanic, with small slices of White, Asian, Multi-Racial, and Native American students — a profile that closely mirrors the surrounding Williamsbridge-Olinville census, where roughly a quarter of residents live below the poverty line and median household income sits around $55,600. With an Economic Need Index of 90 and 26% of students on IEPs, the school serves a population that is heavily working-class and includes a meaningful share of students with disabilities.
Neighborhood
Williamsbridge-Olinville is a working-class, family-oriented part of the central Bronx where most residents rent and a quarter live below the poverty line. Median household income is about $55,600 and only 20% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, but homeownership at 31% and a roughly $518K median home value suggest steady, modest investment. The area draws families who prize affordability and proximity to extended family over commute convenience.
The 2/5 trains at 219 St (about a 6-minute walk) and Gun Hill Rd (about an 8-minute walk) cover most commuting needs, with 225 St (about an 11-minute walk) as a third option on the same line.
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) · 19 families responded (6% 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. North Bronx School of Empowerment admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- North Bronx School of EmpowermentUnscreened146 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 North Bronx School of Empowerment a good school?
- On Motley, North Bronx School of Empowerment earns an overall rating of 32/100 — 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 11 average.
- What grades does North Bronx School of Empowerment serve?
- North Bronx School of Empowerment serves grades 6 to 8.
- How do students get into North Bronx School of Empowerment?
- North Bronx School of Empowerment admits by application through a random lottery, with no academic screen.
- Is North Bronx School of Empowerment public, charter, or private?
- North Bronx School of Empowerment is a public school in NYC Community School District 11.
- What neighborhood is North Bronx School of Empowerment in?
- North Bronx School of Empowerment is in Williamsbridge-Olinville, Bronx.