By Jeremy Walsh
The grades are in and schools in northeast Queens showed mixed results over last year’s scores in the second annual rating of the city’s public schools.
The grades are based on surveys of teachers and parents, the percentage of students passing state tests and the improvement in performance numbers over the last year.
District 25, which covers Flushing, Whitestone, College Point, Auburndale, Beechhurst and Queensboro Hill, saw a drop in overall grades. In 2008, nine primary and intermediate schools received A’s, 16 schools got B’s, six schools got C’s and one school got a D. Last year 15 schools earned A’s, 14 schools earned B’s and two schools earned C’s.
PS 219, Paul Klapper School, earned an A with 90.2 points, the top school in the district. PS 214, Cadwallader Colden School, was next, earning an A with 76.2 points. Last year, PS 219 earned a B, while PS 214 got an A.
This year’s lowest-scoring school, PS 29, earned a D with 32.1 points. Last year’s low-scorer, IS 25, earned a C again this year.
District 26, which includes Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck and Glen Oaks as well as part of Auburndale and Fresh Meadows, had a good year. In 2008, 18 primary and intermediate schools got A’s and eight got B’s. Last year 16 received A’s, seven got B’s and three earned C’s.
PS 188, Kingsbury School, earned an A with 90.1 points, the top school in the district. PS 133 was next, earning an A with 81.9 points. Last year PS 188 earned a B, while PS 133 got an A.
This year’s lowest-scoring school, Rufus King, earned a B with 56.4 points. Last year it got an A. Last year’s low-scorer, PS 186, Castlewood School, got an A this year. Last year it earned a C.
District 29, which includes Queens Village, Cambria Heights, Springfield Gardens, Rosedale, Laurelton and parts of Jamaica, Hollis, Bellerose and Fresh Meadows, saw a slight increase in high grades, but also an increase in lower grades. In 2008, 11 primary and intermediate schools earned A’s, 13 earned B’s, six earned C’s, one earned a D and one earned an F. Last year, eight schools got A’s, 19 earned B’s, three got C’s and one got a D.
PS 52, this year’s top-scoring school in the district, got an A with 80.3 points. In second place was PS 34, John Harvard School, which earned an A with 69.3 points. Last year both schools got B’s.
This year’s lowest-scoring school was the Preparatory Academy for Writers, which received an F. Last year it was not graded because it was a new school and there were no data to gauge student improvement. Last year’s low-scorer, PS 136, Roy Wilkins School, earned a B this year. Last year it got a D.
District 28, which includes Forest Hills, Rego Park, Kew Gardens and Briarwood, saw a slight increase in grades. In 2008, 14 primary and intermediate schools earned A’s, 13 got B’s and four got C’s. Last year, 11 earned A’s, 10 got B’s, seven got C’s and two earned D’s.
PS 175, Lynn Gross Discovery School, this year’s top-scorer in the district, got an A with 80.9 points. In second was PS 99, Kew Gardens School, earning an A with 77.3 points. Last year PS 175 also received an A, while PS 99 got a B.
This year’s lowest-scoring school was PS 30, which got a C with 33 points. It was also last year’s low-scorer, earning a D.
District 24, which includes Middle Village, Maspeth, Glendale, Ridgewood, Long Island City, Jackson Heights, Corona and Elmhurst, surged to a much better showing. In 2008, 19 primary and intermediate schools got A’s, nine received B’s and three got C’s. Last year, eight of those schools got A’s, 16 got B’s, four got C’s and one received a D.
PS 81, Jean Paul Richter School was the top scorer with 86.9 points, an A. PS 12, James B. Colgate School, was right behind with 86.6. Both schools scored a B last year.
The lowest scoring school in the district this year was PS 128, Juniper Valley School, which got a C with 39 points. Last year the school also received a C.
Meanwhile, last year’s low-scoring school, IS 119, The Glendale School, climbed from a D to a C with 42.8 points.
District 30, which includes Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst, Long Island City, Astoria and Woodside, also saw major improvements in grades. In 2008, 15 primary and intermediate schools earned A’s, 16 earned B’s and one earned a C. Last year, eight schools got A’s, 13 earned B’s, seven got C’s, one got a D and one received an F.
The Academy for New Americans, this year’s top-scoring school, earned an A with 89.9 points. IS 141, The Steinway School, was close behind, earning an A with 81.3 points. Last year, the Academy did not receive a grade, while IS 141 got an A.
PS 127, the Aerospace Science Magnet School, was the lowest-scoring in the district, earning a C with 40.6 points. Last year it got a B. Last year’s low-scorer, PS 151, Mary D. Carter School, earned an A this year.
District 27, which includes Howard Beach, Ozone Park, South Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, South Richmond Hill and the Rockaways, saw a substantial increase in high letter grades. In 2008, 12 primary and intermediary schools got A’s, 17 earned B’s, eight earned C’s and two earned D’s. Last year, four earned A’s, 14 got B’s, 13 earned C’s, four got D’s and one school received an F.
This year’s top school in the district, PS 254, got an A with 91 points. It was followed by PS 100, Glenn Morris School, which earned an A with 79.2 points. Last year PS 254 earned a C, while PS 100 got an A.
This year’s lowest-scoring school, PS 225, Seaside School, earned a D with 27.6 points. Last year it also earned a D. Last year’s low-scorer, PS 155, went from an F last year to a B in 2008.
