P.S. 001 Courtlandt School

Both ELA (28.3%) and math (37.3%) proficiency remain well below the district averages of 51.3% and 49.0%, but the trajectory is genuinely encouraging. Math has climbed from 11.4% in 2016 to 37.3% in 2025, and ELA has nearly recovered from a 2022 post-pandemic dip to post its highest score since the school began tracking. Grade 3 math stands out at 40%, and grade 4 ELA hit 41.2% — signs that the school's growth is reaching the tested grades. Students here are still catching up rather than leading, but the curve is moving in the right direction after a turbulent stretch.

Parents love this school — 95% satisfaction, 98% trust in teachers, and 98% trust in the principal — yet the teacher picture is more complicated. Only 65% of teachers say they trust school leadership, teacher-reported safety sits at 70% (below the 80.5% district average), and just 79% rate instruction quality positively versus 88% districtwide. Attendance matches the district average at 91.4%, but chronic absenteeism is severe at 65.1%, hitting boys harder than girls. On the positive side, the school has reported zero suspensions three years running, suggesting a warm, restorative approach to behavior rather than a punitive one.

About 74% of students identify as Hispanic and 23% as Black, with a small white contingent and very limited Asian representation — a diversity index of 39% reflecting the relative concentration. The student body mirrors the neighborhood around it, where the population is largely working-class Hispanic and Black families with a poverty rate near 38%. Roughly one in five students has an IEP, slightly above typical. PTA fundraising of $22 per student is more than double the district average, showing families invest here even when household incomes are tight.

Melrose is a dense, working-class pocket of the South Bronx where the median household income sits around $30,000 and nearly 4 in 10 residents live below the poverty line. Just 14% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, and homeownership is rare at about 10% — most families rent. Only about 16% of households include children, so this school serves a relatively small slice of the surrounding community, but those families are deeply invested in their kids' schools.

The 3 Av-149 St station on the 2 and 5 lines is about a 5-minute walk away, and the 149 St-Grand Concourse station on the 2/5 lines is roughly 8 minutes on foot — both accessible commutes for families across the South Bronx.