William E. Grady Career and Technical Education High School

Grady's academic identity is its dual mission: AP courses in math and science layered alongside five CTE pathways that lead to industry-recognized credentials. The program richness score of 80/100 reflects this breadth, and the school adds ELL support and world languages to round out the curriculum. Within District 21, where ELA proficiency averages 60% and math averages 63%, Grady's distinguishing feature is offering students a tangible career credential by graduation, not just a diploma.

Grady's climate numbers are strikingly positive. Parent-principal trust sits at 94%, parent-teacher trust at 94%, and overall parent satisfaction at 88% — strong signals that families feel heard. Teachers report 94% confidence in their own instruction quality and 93% trust in leadership, suggesting a faculty that feels supported by administration. Most striking: zero suspensions were reported for the year, well below the district's 0.5% average — a clear marker of a calm, structured environment.

Grady's student body is genuinely diverse: 42% Black, 29% Hispanic, 17% White, and 10% Asian, for a diversity index of 73%. The economic need index of 79% means most students come from households under financial pressure, and 36% of students receive IEP services — a meaningful share that signals serious inclusion work. Brighton Beach itself is a multilingual working-class neighborhood where longtime residents, immigrants, and a substantial Russian-speaking community all live within a few blocks of each other.

Brighton Beach is a dense, working-class pocket of southern Brooklyn where the median household income is around $49,254 and nearly a quarter of residents live below the poverty line. At the same time, more than half of area adults hold a bachelor's degree, and the mix of longtime renters and recent immigrants gives the area its distinctive multilingual character. About 17% of households include children, and homeownership is low at 25%, reflecting the prevalence of rent-stabilized housing.

The school is about a 9-minute walk from the Brighton Beach B/Q stop, roughly 11 minutes from the Ocean Parkway Q, and around 12 minutes from Sheepshead Bay on the B/Q.