At a Glance
A preK-8 screened school in Bay Ridge with an unusually rich program menu but academic results that trail the district
Best suited for
Families who want a screened preK-8 with an exceptional program menu and strong parent-teacher relationships, and who are willing to engage actively around attendance and academics to make the most of what the school offers.
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
- A three-year software engineering sequence beginning in 6th grade, unusual for a neighborhood public school
- Perfect 100/100 program-richness score — art, band, orchestra, theater, debate, robotics, cooking, and more all on the menu
- Honors/Accelerated academic track alongside ELL support, serving a wide range of learners under one roof
- Screened preK-8 admissions that keep families in the same school from kindergarten through middle school
- Strong parent trust in teachers and the principal (95% and 94%), rare numbers for any public school
Things to consider
- Both ELA and math proficiency run roughly 10–18 points below the district average — meaningful academic gaps to weigh
- Chronic absenteeism at 72% is a real concern; 88% of Asian students fall into that category, and the overall daily attendance rate trails the district
- PTA fundraising is just $10 per student compared to the district's $61 — a small parent-dollar base that may affect extras and enrichment
- Teacher-principal trust at 73% is notably lower than parent trust, hinting at some internal alignment issues
- A sharp dip in 6th-grade results suggests the middle-school years may need extra family attention
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 20
Within District 20 — a generally strong Brooklyn district — P.S./I.S. 30 lands below the district average on overall score, ELA, math, attendance, parent satisfaction, and teacher-reported safety. Peer schools like I.S. 187 and P.S. 127 score higher on the program-richness scale, and the district average ELA of 66% and math of 71% set a high bar this school isn't currently meeting.
Academics
ELA proficiency sits at 55.9% and math at 53.4%, both meaningfully below the district averages of 66.2% and 71.2%. The trend over the past decade is mixed but not dire — ELA bounced between the high 40s and high 50s, while math has improved substantially from 40% in 2016 to the mid-50s today. The grade-level breakdown shows real inconsistency: 4th and 5th graders post strong results (ELA 65-69%, math 61-67%), but 6th graders drop sharply (ELA 39.8%, math 40.7%), suggesting the middle-school transition may be where momentum gets lost.
Culture
Day-to-day climate is a mixed picture. Parent trust in teachers and the principal is genuinely strong (95% and 94%), and parents report high satisfaction at 88% — solid if below the district's 94%. Teachers feel less aligned with school leadership (73% trust the principal), and only 87% rate instruction quality highly, compared to 92% districtwide. Discipline is mild — just eight suspensions last year, a 1% rate — and stable over three years. The big yellow flag is chronic absenteeism: 72% of students missed the equivalent of nearly a month or more, far above typical levels, and the Asian subgroup hits 88%.
Community
The student body is racially mixed — 41% White, 37% Hispanic, 19% Asian, 2% Black — and the economic need index of 75.3% signals a working- and middle-class population rather than the wealthier profile of Bay Ridge overall. The contrast is notable: the surrounding neighborhood reports an $88,898 median income and 11.5% poverty rate, yet three out of four students here qualify for economic need, suggesting the school draws from renters and working families throughout the area rather than only the homeowners. About 21% of students have IEPs and there's ELL support on offer.
Neighborhood
Bay Ridge is a settled, family-oriented Brooklyn neighborhood with a noticeably higher education rate than most of the borough — half of adults have a bachelor's degree — and a homeownership rate of 37.5%. Median household income sits in the upper-$80,000s with low poverty. About one in five households has children under 18, and the median home value is just over $900,000. It's a place where families put down roots.
The R train at Bay Ridge Av is roughly a 2-minute walk, the R at 77 St is about 6 minutes, and the N/R at 59 St is around 13 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) · 336 families responded (41% rate)
Programs & Activities
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./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington 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.
Middle school (6th grade)
Middle school is one citywide application, made in 5th grade. P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington admits through 2 programs, and each one has its own admissions method:
- Science, Math & Engineering ProgramScreened25 seats
- Zoned ProgramZoned100 seats
Middle school application
- Opened
- Wed, Oct 14
- Closes
- Fri, Dec 11
- Offers
- Wed, Apr 7
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the middle school application, in 5th grade.
- 2Screened programs rank 4th-grade course grades, so last year's report card is the one that counts.
- 3Zoned programs give priority to students who live in the zone — a priority, not a guaranteed seat.
- 4Rank programs in true preference order — the match places your child in the highest-ranked one that offers a seat.
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./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington a good school?
- On Motley, P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington earns an overall rating of 55/100 — 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 20 average.
- What grades does P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington serve?
- P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington serves grades K to 8.
- How do students get into P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington?
- P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington is a screened school — it admits by application, ranking applicants on their course grades (4th grade for middle school, the 7th-grade core-course average for high school); a few schools add an assessment, writing sample, or interview.
- Is P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington public, charter, or private?
- P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington is a public school in NYC Community School District 20.
- What neighborhood is P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington in?
- P.S./I.S. 30 Mary White Ovington is in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.