P.S. 233 Langston Hughes

The 2025 numbers — 64.8% ELA proficiency and 76.9% math — put P.S. 233 comfortably above the district averages of 58.4% and 61.4%, with an overall score of 2.83/4 against the district's 2.39. The more telling read is the trajectory: as recently as 2017, only about a fifth of students met math standards, and ELA proficiency was hovering in the mid-30s. Math has climbed every year since, and 2025 brought a particularly large jump in both subjects. Grade 5 leads the way at 71% ELA and 80.6% math.

Day-to-day, this feels like a high-trust, low-conflict school. Teachers rate safety at 99% (vs. 96% district) and instruction quality at 96% (vs. 90% district), and 94% report trusting their principal — all meaningfully above District 18 norms. Parent trust is also strong: 93% trust teachers, 92% trust the principal, and 92% feel the school builds strong relationships. Zero suspensions across three straight years is unusual and points to a restorative approach. Attendance is solid at 91.2%, though chronic absenteeism runs high at 62.7%, a citywide pattern more than a school-specific flag.

The student body is 86% Black and 11% Hispanic, with a diversity index of 29% — largely reflecting the surrounding neighborhood. About 69% of students qualify as high economic need and 19% have IEPs, both consistent with the area's working-class profile. PTA fundraising lands at roughly $14 per student, well below the district average of $23 — a function of local economics more than disengagement, since parent satisfaction and trust scores are high.

East Flatbush-Remsen Village is a predominantly renter pocket of central Brooklyn — homeownership sits at just 23.5%, and median household income is $57,611 with about 19% of residents living below the poverty line. Only about 22% of adults hold a bachelor's degree. Unusually, just 9% of neighborhood households include children, suggesting the area skews toward adult or single-person households more than typical family neighborhoods. The median home value is around $692K.

There are no quick subway hops — the 3 train at Saratoga Avenue is about a 14-minute walk, Rockaway Avenue on the 3 is roughly 17 minutes, and the L at Canarsie-Rockaway Parkway is about a 15-minute walk, so most families will rely on bus, car, or stroller commute.