P.S. 087 Bronx

P.S. 087's 2025 scores — 54.3% ELA and 48.4% math — sit just below the district averages of 56.7% and 55.6%, respectively. That's a meaningful gap in math, but the story is the trend: the school has added 33.8 percentage points in ELA since 2022 and 30.7 points in math. Grade 5 students are thriving, with 75% hitting proficiency in ELA (though math drops to 53.6%). Grade 3 and 4 are more mixed, hovering around 48-49% in both subjects. The overall score of 2.05 out of 4 is below the district average of 2.25, but the trajectory suggests this is a school on the rise, not one resting on its numbers.

Here's where P.S. 087 punches well above its academic weight. Parent satisfaction sits at 95%, with 98% trust in both teachers and the principal — numbers most schools in the city would envy. Teachers report 96% instruction quality and 99% safety, suggesting the day-to-day environment is strong. The discipline picture is calm: just 3 suspensions last year (1% rate), up from zero in prior years but still extremely low. But there's a shadow: chronic absenteeism at 67.5% means roughly two-thirds of students are missing significant school time. That's a structural challenge that even the best classroom experience can't fully solve.

With 351 students, P.S. 087 is a mid-sized elementary. The student body is predominantly Black (57%) and Hispanic (28%), with smaller Asian (6%), Multi-Racial (3%), and Native American (5%) populations. The diversity index of 65% reflects a heterogeneous community. Economic need is high at 77.3% — more than three-quarters of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. About 17% have IEPs. The neighborhood around the school has a moderate median household income of $73,320 with 43.7% homeownership, suggesting a working- and middle-class parent base.

Wakefield-Woodlawn is a solid, working-to-middle-class Bronx neighborhood with a family density score of 60 — meaning lots of kids in the area. The safety score (32) is on the lower end, which is worth noting for parents evaluating the area. Transit options (44) are decent but not exceptional. The community is stable (91.57) with a strong sense of permanence, and nearly half of residents own their homes. Median home values hover around $554,000, making this an increasingly expensive area for the Bronx. There are parks and playgrounds in the area, and the neighborhood has a reputation for being residential and quiet despite the safety concerns that plague parts of the Bronx.

The school is in a residential pocket of Wakefield — families from the zoned area typically walk or take short bus rides. Those coming from further afield will find limited transit options compared to more central Bronx locations.