P.S. 049 Dorothy Bonawit Kole

P.S. 049's 62.1% ELA proficiency and 65.6% math proficiency both run comfortably above the District 24 averages of roughly 51% and 55%. The school has held that edge consistently since around 2018, with math trending slightly stronger than ELA in most years. Scores climb through the upper grades — 7th-grade math hits 74.6% — suggesting the program gains momentum as students move up. One blip worth flagging: ELA dipped to 56.9% in 2024 before rebounding in 2025, so the trajectory is positive but not perfectly smooth.

The survey numbers here are genuinely strong. Parent-teacher trust is 98%, parent-principal trust 97%, and teacher-reported safety 95% — all at or above the district average. Teacher trust in the principal (92%) and instructional quality (97%) point to a faculty that feels supported and a building that runs well day-to-day. The discipline picture is striking: zero suspensions in 2022-23 and 2023-24, down from a single suspension the year before. Chronic absenteeism at 85% is high on paper, though the underlying rates vary sharply by subgroup, with Asian students' absenteeism (94.6%) notably elevated — a pattern worth asking the school about directly.

The student body is roughly half White, just over a quarter Hispanic, and about a fifth Asian, with very small Black, multiracial, and Native American populations. That mix tracks reasonably well with Middle Village's neighborhood demographics, where homeowner families are the majority. The economic need index at 41.1% indicates a mostly working- and middle-class school population, and 17% of students have IEPs, which is moderate. The diversity index of 66% reflects real variety rather than a single dominant group.

Middle Village is a family-anchored Queens neighborhood with a median household income around $93,000, a low poverty rate of 7.2%, and a homeownership rate of 57.3% — well above the citywide norm. Median home values near $873,000 reflect the stability and desirability of the area. About 22% of households have children under 18, and roughly a third of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. It's the kind of place where multi-generational households and long-time residents are common, and where the school often reflects that settled character.

Subway access is thin here — the closest stations are the M train at Middle Village-Metropolitan Avenue and the M/R at Woodhaven Boulevard, both roughly a 20-minute walk. Most families rely on school buses, drop-offs, or driving rather than transit.