At a Glance
A zoned Dyker Heights elementary where test scores have climbed sharply and families show up strong
Best suited for
Families zoned for the school who prioritize strong academics, an engaged parent community, and a quiet residential neighborhood — and who are comfortable with R-train-only transit and walking commutes of 10+ minutes to the subway
Overall Rating
Rating = average of NY State ELA + math proficiency, grades 3–8
Bands are Motley's thresholds on a 0–100 scale, not New York State performance levels.
How this is scored→What stands out
- Academic trajectory from ~50% proficiency in 2016 to over 80% in both ELA and math in 2025
- PTA fundraising at $129 per student — more than double the district average of $61
- Zero suspensions across three consecutive school years
- Family survey response rate of 82%, signaling unusually engaged parents
- Teacher-reported safety of 100% with strong parent-principal trust
Things to consider
- The 84.7% chronic absenteeism rate is striking and worth asking the school to explain — it cuts against every other positive indicator in the data
- Subway access is limited to the R train, with the nearest stations requiring an 11- to 17-minute walk
- Class size of 25 matches the district average exactly — this is not a small-school experience
- One in five students has an IEP, useful context for any family considering supports
- The 2025 ELA jump (from 65.7% to 81.3% in a single year) deserves a second data point to confirm it's a real shift
Based on 2025 data
School SummaryDistrict 20
P.S. 127 ranks among the higher-performing elementary schools in District 20. The peer schools listed in the district sit in the 79-94 range; based on proficiency and overall score, P.S. 127 fits comfortably in that top tier and outpaces most named peers on raw ELA and math outcomes.
Academics
Both ELA (81.3%) and math (82.9%) proficiency sit well above the District 20 averages of 66.2% and 71.2% respectively. The school's overall score of 3.28 out of 4 lands roughly half a point above the district's 2.75. The trajectory is striking: ELA proficiency climbed from 50% in 2016 to 81.3% in 2025, and math rose from 51.6% to 82.9% over the same period. Scores by grade are consistent — 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders all clear 78% in both subjects. The 2025 ELA jump (from 65.7% to 81.3%) is a notable single-year leap worth watching for sustainability.
Culture
The day-to-day climate reads as warm and high-trust. Parent-teacher trust and parent-principal trust both sit at 98%, and teacher-reported safety is a perfect 100%. Teacher collegial trust (95%) and parent satisfaction (94%) round out a survey picture that beats most district averages. The school has reported zero suspensions for three consecutive years, and attendance (94.7%) edges above the district average. The one striking number that complicates this picture is chronic absenteeism — the school reports 84.7% of students as chronically absent, a figure high enough that parents should ask what it means in practice for their child's specific classroom.
Community
The student body reflects a more Asian-and-White-leaning Dyker Heights than the citywide average: 38% Asian, 33% White, 27% Hispanic, with very small Black and multiracial populations. The diversity index sits at 67%. About a fifth of students have IEPs (22%), and the economic need index is 59.9%. The school community feels engaged — 82% of families responded to the latest survey and PTA fundraising runs at more than double the district per-student average.
Neighborhood
Dyker Heights is a family-dense pocket of Brooklyn where 25.9% of households have children and more than half of residents own their homes (51.7%). Median home values sit north of $1 million, and the median household income is $76,739 — comfortable but below the citywide median, with a 19.1% poverty rate. About a third of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. It's a quieter, block-by-block neighborhood built around families rather than nightlife or commercial strips.
Transit access is limited — the R train is the only nearby subway, with 86 St about an 11-minute walk, 77 St about 12 minutes, and Bay Ridge Av roughly 17 minutes on foot
Academic Performance
ELA Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State ELA exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Math Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Math exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Historical Trends
The dashed line marks 2023, when New York changed its grades 3–8 state tests. Scores before and after it aren’t directly comparable.
2020–2021 data unavailable due to COVID-19
Source: NYC DOE School Quality Reports
Survey Results
NYC School Survey (2025) · 532 families responded (82% rate)
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
PTA Fundraising
Source: DOE Local Law 171 disclosure
Discipline
NYSED Student & Educator Database (2023-24)
Economic Need & Special Populations
How to get in, step by step
Kindergarten
P.S. 127 McKinley Park has an attendance zone. At elementary level, in-zone students get a guaranteed seat. Every family still applies on MySchools: the application confirms the zoned seat, and ranking other schools doesn't cost you it.
Kindergarten application
- Opens
- Wed, Dec 9
- Closes
- Fri, Jan 22
- Offers
- Tue, Mar 30
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Check that your address is inside the zone — zones change, so confirm it before you sign a lease.
- 2Apply during the kindergarten application, even with a zoned seat.
- 3Rank this school along with any others you'd take, in true preference order.
Open houses and tours
We haven’t seen open-house dates for this school yet.
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is P.S. 127 McKinley Park a good school?
- On Motley, P.S. 127 McKinley Park earns an overall rating of 82/100 — the average of the school's New York State ELA and math proficiency, grades 3–8, shown out of 100. Its state test results run above the District 20 average.
- What grades does P.S. 127 McKinley Park serve?
- P.S. 127 McKinley Park serves grades K to 5.
- How do students get into P.S. 127 McKinley Park?
- P.S. 127 McKinley Park admits by zone — children who live in its attendance zone get a guaranteed seat.
- Is P.S. 127 McKinley Park public, charter, or private?
- P.S. 127 McKinley Park is a public school in NYC Community School District 20.
- What neighborhood is P.S. 127 McKinley Park in?
- P.S. 127 McKinley Park is in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn.