Success Academy Charter School - Washington Heights

The numbers here are exceptional and worth pausing on. ELA proficiency of 86.1% is nearly double the district average of 47%, and math proficiency of 94.1% is almost twice the district's 52%. Scores dipped sharply during the pandemic years (ELA fell to 64.7% in 2022) but have been recovering steadily since, with 2025 ELA results back near pre-pandemic levels and math essentially at its historical high. Strong performance holds across grades — Grade 5 hits 97.6% in both subjects — and the school carries a 3.6 out of 4 overall rating, well above the district average of about 2.0.

This is where the picture gets more complicated. The 91.7% attendance rate is in line with the district average, but the chronic absenteeism rate of 70.5% is striking — meaning most students here miss enough school each year to be flagged as chronically absent, even as their test scores climb. Teacher-reported instruction quality is 84.2%, somewhat below the district average of 90.4%. Parent satisfaction sits at 59.6%, well below the district average of 94%, though it's worth noting the family survey response rate was effectively zero (1 response), so the parent satisfaction figure reflects an extremely thin slice of families. The combination of high academic results and lower family satisfaction is a known pattern in the Success Academy network — many parents praise the academics, but the strict culture and longer hours aren't a fit for everyone.

The student body is 78% Hispanic, 13% Black, 5% White, and 1% Asian — a profile that closely mirrors the surrounding Washington Heights neighborhood, which is itself a predominantly Hispanic, family-oriented part of upper Manhattan. The school's economic need index of 79.7% means roughly eight out of ten students are considered economically disadvantaged, higher than you might guess given the neighborhood's median household income of about $77,000. About 13% of students have IEPs, and the diversity index of 42% is moderate — the school reflects its neighborhood rather than drawing from across the city.

Washington Heights is a family-dense, predominantly Hispanic neighborhood in upper Manhattan with a median household income of about $77,000 and a poverty rate around 14%. About 13% of households have children, and roughly 42% of adults have a bachelor's degree or higher. Homeownership is low at 17.5%, reflecting the renter-heavy character of the area. Families who send their kids here are part of a community where many neighbors share a background and language, and where the school sits among a critical mass of other children.

The school is easy to reach by subway — the 190 St A stop is roughly a three-minute walk, the 191 St 1 stop about seven minutes, and the 181 St A stop about nine minutes on foot.