P.S. 214

ELA proficiency at 30.3% and math at 27.5% both land roughly 14 to 16 percentage points below the District 12 averages (44.6% and 43.3%), and the overall accountability score of 1.16 out of 4 trails the district's 1.76. The trend line is the more interesting read: ELA has climbed almost 11 points since 2016 (19.2% → 30.3%), and math is up about 7 points, with the strongest year-over-year jumps in 2023 and 2024. Grade-level results are uneven — Grade 5 posts a respectable 49% in ELA and Grade 4 hits 51.6% in math, while Grade 6 collapses to roughly 13% ELA and 9% math, which is a sharp enough cliff to suggest a small cohort, a tough transition year, or both worth asking about. The overall picture is a school catching up, not yet at the district middle.

The school day feels relational here. Parent satisfaction runs at 91% (essentially matching the district average of about 92%), and the trust numbers are notably strong: 92% of parents say they trust their child's teacher, 90% trust the principal, and 97% report strong adult-student relationships. Teachers agree — 96% trust the principal, 93% trust their colleagues, and 92% rate instruction quality at their school, which is meaningfully above the district average of 88.4%. The softer spots are real: chronic absenteeism is high at 52.2%, daily attendance is 88.2% (below the 90.1% district mark), and only 79% of teachers say they feel safe, compared with about 85% across District 12. Discipline is a quiet strength — just 3 suspensions a year and a 0% suspension rate, well under the district's 0.4%, with the trend flat-low over the past three years rather than escalating.

P.S. 214's enrollment of 934 reflects the makeup of West Farms almost directly. About 74% of students are Hispanic, 21% Black, 2% Asian, and 1% each white and multiracial — a diversity index of 41%, which is low because the school is heavily concentrated in two groups rather than broadly mixed. The economic need index of 92.8 signals that nearly all students qualify as high need, matching the neighborhood's median household income of roughly $28,000 and 46.5% poverty rate. About 20% of students have IEPs and the school runs ELL support, which makes sense given the demographic profile. With 477 families responding to the most recent survey — a strong 60% response rate — this is a community that shows up to be counted.

West Farms is one of the poorer corners of the Bronx. Median household income sits around $27,800, more than 40% of residents live below the poverty line, and only about 11% of adults hold a bachelor's degree. Just 5.6% of households own their homes, though the median home value is surprisingly high at roughly $537,000 — a sign that renters dominate a neighborhood where the housing stock itself has value. Only 9.5% of households include children, which is part of why a school like P.S. 214, with nearly 1,000 students, matters so much as a local anchor. Families who live here rely heavily on public transit, given the low homeownership and limited discretionary income for cars.

The school is essentially right next to West Farms Square–East Tremont Avenue on the 2 and 5 lines — about a 2-minute walk — and E 180th Street (also 2 and 5) is roughly 8 minutes on foot, with 174th Street about 9 minutes. Three nearby stations on the same trunk line make this one of the easier Bronx commutes for families coming in either direction.