P.S. 152 Dyckman Valley

P.S. 152's proficiency rates of 47.6% in both ELA and math essentially match the district ELA average (47.1%) and run about four points below the district math average (52.1%). What makes the numbers interesting is the trajectory: ELA proficiency dropped to 15.1% in 2022 and math to 17.2%, then climbed steadily to 47.6% in both subjects by 2025. That's the kind of recovery almost no other nearby school has matched in the same window. Grade-level data shows strength at the earlier grades — Grade 3 hits 58.5% ELA and 51.2% math — with slippage by Grade 5 (40.3% ELA, 39.7% math), suggesting gains are strongest where the recent instructional push is freshest. The overall DOE quality review of 1.9 out of 4 sits just under the district average of 1.98, so the school is no longer below the pack, though it isn't pulling ahead of it either.

The survey numbers here are striking: 99% parent satisfaction, 100% parent-principal trust, 100% parent-teacher trust, 100% strong-family relationships, and 100% teacher instruction quality — every figure well above the district averages of 94% and 90% respectively. Teachers report 98% safety in the building (district average 93%), and the school has recorded zero suspensions for three consecutive years, an unusual clean record for a building of this size and economic profile. Teacher collegial trust at 95% and teacher-principal trust at 93% suggest a calm, well-led staff room. The disconnect is attendance: chronic absenteeism at 68% means roughly two-thirds of students miss 10% or more of the school year, even though the daily attendance rate of 91.5% looks average on its own. The picture is a school families love and trust, where the day-to-day logistics of getting kids through the door remain the hard part.

The student body is 85% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, 4% Black, and 1% each Asian and White, closely tracking the surrounding Washington Heights population. The economic need index of 87.2 indicates a high-poverty population, and 19% of students have IEPs (just below the citywide share for a school this size). Total enrollment of 483 and an average class size of 21.9 sit right on the district average, so class sizes aren't unusual here. The diversity index of 32% is low for the city as a whole but typical for a neighborhood where one demographic group dominates the residential population.

Northern Washington Heights is a mostly renter, largely Hispanic neighborhood where median household income runs about $76,919 and roughly 14% of residents live below the poverty line. About 13% of households have children under 18, college attainment sits at 41.8%, and homeownership is just 17.5% — a neighborhood of working families and long-term renters rather than owners. The trade-off is home prices well below the Manhattan median, with a typical home value near $575,000.

Three subway options within an easy walk: the 1 train at Dyckman Street is about 3 minutes on foot, the 1 at 191st Street about 7 minutes, and the A at Dyckman Street about 8 minutes.