The 47 American Sign Language & English Lower School

ELA proficiency sits at 44% and math at 43% — well below district averages of 73% in both subjects, and the overall score of 1.74 out of 4 trails the district's 2.91. But the trajectory matters: in 2016, only 31% of students met ELA standards and a striking 14% met math standards. Math proficiency has since roughly tripled. Results also vary sharply by grade — third-graders lag (25% ELA, 35% math), while seventh-graders post strong math results (70.6%), suggesting older students find their footing. With 51% of students classified IEP and a sizable deaf and hard-of-hearing population, standard state assessments tell only part of the story here.

The day-to-day climate leans warm: zero suspensions for three years running, and parent-teacher trust sits at 86%, the highest trust score in the survey data. Attendance is slightly below district norms at 90.7%, and chronic absenteeism is notably high at 62.9% — worth asking the school how they're addressing it. Teacher-reported safety (83%) and especially teacher instruction quality (57%) and collegial trust (57%) lag district averages, hinting that staff experience could be stronger. Only 19% of families returned the climate survey, so parent satisfaction at 70% carries some statistical uncertainty.

About half the students identify as Hispanic and 21% as Black, with White (19%), Asian (6%), and multiracial (5%) making up the balance — a profile that looks nothing like the surrounding Gramercy neighborhood, where the median household income tops $150,000. That mismatch is by design: this is a citywide specialized program drawing families from across the five boroughs. Half of students have IEPs, an unusually high share that reflects the school's deaf-education focus, and an English-language learner support program is in place for students who need it.

The school sits in Gramercy, a neighborhood of high-earning, college-educated households where over 83% of adults hold a bachelor's degree and homeownership is relatively common for Manhattan. The blocks around the school are mostly a mix of mid-rise offices and prewar residential towers, and the area feels more subdued on evenings and weekends than busier parts of the East Side. Most of the families who walk through the school's doors commute in from elsewhere in the city — students here aren't the neighborhood kids of the census tract, but citywide travelers drawn by a specific program.

Three subway lines are within walking distance: the 6 train at 23rd St–Baruch College (about a 6-minute walk), the 6 at 28th St (about 8 minutes), and the L at 3rd Avenue (about 10 minutes).