P.S. 092 Mary McLeod Bethune

Math is the clear bright spot: 61.5% proficiency in 2025 sits well above the District 5 average of about 51%, and represents a near-tripling of the school's 2016 rate. ELA trails at 45.3%, about 9 points below the district average of roughly 54%, though the trend is also upward from the high teens in 2016. The school's overall quality score of 2.14/4 is essentially at the district average. Scores by grade are uneven — Grade 3 ELA sits at just 16.7%, while Grades 4 and 5 are far stronger, suggesting either a weaker cohort or a curriculum that takes time to click. The year-to-year volatility (ELA bounced between 19% and 45% over the past decade) is worth flagging — gains are real but not yet locked in.

The day-to-day feel here is friendly and orderly, with just one suspension over the last three years and teachers rating safety at 93%, above the district norm of about 89%. Parents clearly like it too — 88% are satisfied and parent trust in teachers and the principal both land in the low 90s, with a 92% family survey response rate suggesting real engagement. The interesting tension is on the staff side: teachers rate instruction quality at a remarkable 97%, but only 61% trust their principal and teacher-to-teacher collegial trust is 66%. That's a notable disconnect between a confident teaching corps and weaker internal leadership trust. Attendance is the biggest cultural headwind — at 85.8%, it sits below the district average of 88.6%, and 43.4% of students are chronically absent, a level that materially affects learning regardless of what happens in the classroom.

The student body is almost entirely Black and Hispanic (about 50% and 45%), with very small numbers of White, Asian, and multiracial students — a diversity index of just 50% reflects how concentrated the population is rather than how integrated. The school serves a notable share of students with IEPs at 28%, well above what you'd typically see, so families navigating special education services will find a peer group of similar families here. The neighborhood around the school mirrors this makeup closely, making P.S. 092 feel like a true community school rather than a destination choice from outside the zone.

Harlem (North), where P.S. 092 sits, is a working- and middle-income neighborhood with a median household income around $54,700 and about a quarter of households below the poverty line. Just 10% of households have children at home, and only about 12% own their homes — typical of a predominantly renter neighborhood. Roughly 36% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and median home values north of $700K reflect Harlem's longer-term price growth even as incomes stay relatively modest.

Families can reach the school via the 135 St C and B trains (about a five-minute walk) or the 135 St 2 and 3 trains (about six minutes), with the 125 St 2 and 3 station roughly ten minutes away on foot.