At a Glance
A small zoned elementary school in East Williamsburg where parents strongly trust the teachers, but proficiency scores still trail the district.
Best suited for
Families zoned for the school who value a small, relationship-driven community with engaged teachers and a calm disciplinary climate — and who are prepared to invest in attendance routines and outside academic support to compensate for what the school's scores alone don't deliver.
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
- Zero suspensions and a near-zero suspension history — an unusually calm disciplinary climate
- 100% of teachers rate instruction quality and collegial trust as strong
- 95%+ parent satisfaction with the school, the teacher, and the principal
- Very small enrollment of 319 students, allowing for tight-knit relationships
- Walking distance to three L train stops (Montrose Av, Grand St, Morgan Av)
Things to consider
- ELA proficiency is roughly 16 points below district average and math is 21 points below
- Half of all students are chronically absent — the single biggest academic risk factor
- PTA fundraising at $13 per student means limited enrichment budget compared to peers
- Test scores swing significantly year to year, making it hard to read the trend
- 4th- and 5th-grade math proficiency falls into the high 20s — the upper grades are weaker than the early grades
- Diversity is limited, with one demographic group making up more than 70% of enrollment
Based on 2025 data
School SummaryDistrict 14
Within District 14, this school sits clearly below its peer average. Schools like P.S. 34, P.S. 31, and the Success Academy charters in Bed-Stuy and Williamsburg are all scoring in the 88–97 range on the city's 100-point scale, well above P.S. 196's overall rating of 1.69 out of 4. Parents who want a higher-performing public option within the district have several alternatives, though seating at the charters is by lottery.
Academics
ELA proficiency is 46.2% against a district average of 62.4%, and math is 38.2% against a district average of 59.5% — both meaningfully below. The trajectory has been volatile rather than steadily improving: ELA rose from 18.9% in 2016 to a peak of 41.5% in 2019, dipped to 22.1% in 2024, then jumped to 46.2% in 2025. Math has stayed in the 30s–40s band since 2018. By grade, 3rd-graders are doing notably better (52.6% in both subjects) than 4th- and 5th-graders, where math drops into the high 20s and low 30s. The school's overall quality rating of 1.69 out of 4 sits below the district average of 2.44, placing it in the lower half of District 14.
Culture
The school has a genuinely warm interior life. 95% of parents are satisfied (above the district 94%), 96% trust their child's teacher, 95% trust the principal, and 100% say there are strong relationships with families. Teachers rate instruction quality and collegial trust at 100%, and 97% report feeling safe — all at or above district norms. There were zero suspensions last year, following one the year before. The catch is chronic absenteeism: 50.2% of students missed enough school to be flagged, with boys (53.4%) and Black students (55.6%) most affected. That gap between a trusted-feeling school and a real attendance crisis is the thing parents should ask about most directly.
Community
The student body is 72% Hispanic, 19% Black, 4% White, and small shares of Multi-Racial, Asian, and Native American students — broadly tracking the older, working-class core of East Williamsburg and Bushwick. The economic need index of 83.2 means most families qualify for free or reduced lunch, and 21% of students have IEPs. The PTA raised just $13 per student last year (district average is $123), which translates to a lean budget for enrichment, trips, and extras.
Neighborhood
East Williamsburg is a neighborhood in transition. The median household income is $81,788 with a 24% poverty rate — a wide gap that signals long-time residents living alongside newer, higher-earning arrivals. The median home value of over $1 million and just 12.5% homeownership tell the same story: most families rent, and the cost of buying in has climbed sharply. Only 9.2% of households here have children, which is on the low side for a family-serving area. About 44% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
The L train is the workhorse — Montrose Av is about a 2-minute walk, Grand St about 5 minutes, and Morgan Av about 8 minutes, giving families easy access along the line.
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) · 115 families responded (40% 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
Pre-K
P.S. 196 Ten Eyck also has Pre-K classes. They're a separate application from kindergarten, made on MySchools.
Pre-K application
Applications typically open in the winter and close in the spring, with offers in late spring; the city announces exact dates each year.
Kindergarten
P.S. 196 Ten Eyck 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. 196 Ten Eyck a good school?
- On Motley, P.S. 196 Ten Eyck earns an overall rating of 42/100 — 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 below the District 14 average.
- What grades does P.S. 196 Ten Eyck serve?
- P.S. 196 Ten Eyck serves grades Pre-K to 5.
- How do students get into P.S. 196 Ten Eyck?
- P.S. 196 Ten Eyck admits by zone — children who live in its attendance zone get a guaranteed seat.
- Is P.S. 196 Ten Eyck public, charter, or private?
- P.S. 196 Ten Eyck is a public school in NYC Community School District 14.
- What neighborhood is P.S. 196 Ten Eyck in?
- P.S. 196 Ten Eyck is in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn.