These Are The Best Elementary, Middle Schools In NYC: New Ranking

NEW YORK CITY — New education rankings from U.S. News & World Report aim to give New York City parents a snapshot of how their child's school compares to others, compiling a list of the best K-8 schools in the five boroughs, and around the state.

The news outlet based its 2024 Best Elementary and Middle School rankings on publicly available data from the U.S. Department of Education, focusing on student proficiency in core subject areas and ranking them at a statewide level.

New York City public schools make up most of the top 10 list for elementary schools, and represent the entire top 10 list at the middle school level. U.S. News ranked P.S. 77 Lower Lab School, on the Upper East Side, as the best in the state. The Lower East Side's New Explorations Into Science, Technology and Math School, which includes grades from kindergarten, was named the state's best middle school.

The U.S. News list includes data on more than 79,000 public elementary and middle schools nationwide.

In New York City, the top 10-ranked public elementary schools are:

1. PS 77 Lower Lab School (ranked No. 1 statewide)
2. New Explorations Into Science, Technology and Math School (ranked No. 2 statewide)
3. The Academy for Excellence Through the Arts (ranked No. 3 statewide)
4. PS 150 (ranked No. 4 statewide)
5. The Anderson School (ranked No. 5 statewide)
6. Tag Young Scholars (ranked No. 6 statewide)
7. Naples Street Elementary School (ranked No. 7 statewide)
8. The PS 166 Richard Rogers School of the Arts & Sciences (ranked No. 10 statewide)
9. PS 31 Samuel F. Dupont (ranked No. 11 statewide)
10. 30th Avenue School (ranked No. 13 statewide)

The top 10-ranked middle schools around NYC were also the top 10 in the state:

1. New Explorations Into Science, Technology and Math School
2. NYC Lab Middle School for Collaborative Studies
3. IS 98 Bay Academy
4. PS 122 Mamie Fay
5. East Side Middle School
6. Columbia Secondary School
7. The Anderson School
8. Tag Young Scholars
9. MS 255 Salk School of Science
10. Mark Twain IS 239 for the Gifted and Talented

In the analysis, U.S. News looked closely at state assessments of students who were proficient or above-proficient in mathematics and reading/language arts, while also accounting for student backgrounds, achievement in core subjects, and how well schools are educating their students. Student-teacher ratios are applied to break ties in the overall score.

LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News, said the state and district-level rankings are intended to give parents a snapshot of their child’s school and how well it’s doing within its community.

“Easily accessible data on student-teacher ratio, district spending, and the number of school counselors available at the school can keep parents informed and involved,” Jones said.

To be included in district-level rankings, at least two of the top performing schools must rank in the top 75 percent of the overall elementary or middle school rankings to qualify for district-level recognition.