P.S. 040 George W. Carver

P.S. 040's 80.8% ELA proficiency and 85.1% math proficiency in 2025 are roughly 23 and 28 percentage points above the District 16 averages, and its overall quality score of 3.32/4 (vs. a district average near 2.29) puts it in the top tier of the district. The long arc is impressive — proficiency climbed from around 20% in 2016 to current levels — though the path has been bouncy, with dips in 2022 and 2024 before each rebound. By grade, the picture is uneven: third and fourth graders are testing at 86–98% proficiency in both subjects, but fifth graders drop to 57% ELA and 60% math, a meaningful decline that parents of older kids should ask the school to explain.

The climate numbers here are striking. Teacher-reported safety is 100%, teacher-principal trust is 100%, parent-principal trust is 100%, and parent satisfaction is 97% — every one of those well above district averages in the 86–94% range. There have been zero suspensions for three consecutive years, which is genuinely unusual for a school of nearly 450 kids. The contradiction is attendance: 91.1% of students show up on a typical day, which is above the district's 88.7% average, but 68.6% are chronically absent, meaning they miss 10% or more of the school year. The families who respond to surveys feel deeply connected — but a 16% family survey response rate and only $8 per student raised by the PTA (against a district average of $69) suggest the engaged core is small and the rest of the school community is harder to reach. Day-to-day, expect a calm, trusting adult culture; the question is whether the school can pull more families into the loop.

The school's 447 students are 71% Black, 20% Hispanic, and 5% Asian — a demographic mix that reflects the long-standing character of eastern Bedford-Stuyvesant. The 83.1% economic need index tells you most families here are at or near the poverty line, and 16% of students have IEPs, in line with citywide averages. The school demographics tell a different story than the neighborhood around it: eastern Bed-Stuy is now 40.8% college-educated with a median home value over $1.1 million, a sign of significant new investment that doesn't yet show up in who's enrolled at the school.

Eastern Bedford-Stuyvesant is a neighborhood in the middle of a deep shift. The 40.8% rate of adults with a bachelor's degree and a median home value above $1.1 million point to major gentrification, while a 23% poverty rate and only 11.9% of households with children remind you this is still a working-class community where many longtime residents remain. Median household income is $70,755, and just over a quarter of homes are owner-occupied. The school sits inside a real Bed-Stuy block, not a polished new development, and the families who walk through the door reflect that.

The C train at Ralph Avenue is a roughly two-minute walk from the school — practically at the front door. The J at Halsey Street is about 10 minutes south on foot, and the C at Rockaway Avenue is about 11 minutes north. Most families in the zone can walk.