Ps/is 187 Hudson Cliffs, New York NY

Original Research by School Decision on Ps/is 187 Hudson Cliffs

PS/IS 187 Hudson Cliffs is a neighborhood public school serving pre-K through eighth grade on Manhattan's Upper West Side, in the shadow of the George Washington Bridge. The building sits at the urban edge where dense residential streets give way to the Hudson River waterfront, a setting that shapes both the school's walkable, mixed-income context and its institutional role as a steady fixture in a neighborhood undergoing sustained housing growth.

The school enrolls a student body of about moderate size for its grade band, drawn largely from the surrounding area. The population is predominantly Hispanic and white, with smaller numbers of Asian, Black, and multiracial students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing economic diversity at the center of the school's composition. Enrollment data by grade shows consistent representation across grades, with particular depth in the middle school grades six through eight, though state data does not report counts of students with individualized education plans or English learners, so a parent would need to ask the school directly about services for those populations.

Reading and math proficiency in grades three through seven cluster in a strong band, with most grades showing solid performance across both subjects. In third and fourth grade, roughly four in five students reached proficiency in math. Fifth grade represents a dip, with about two in three students proficient in math, though English language arts remained strong. Sixth and seventh grade math recovery to the mid-to-high seventies, while reading proficiency in seventh grade reaches exceptional levels. Science proficiency in fifth and eighth grades shows mid-to-high seventies outcomes. The school's profile does not include state test results for kindergarten through second grade, as those grades are not tested in New York State.

Eighth grade is where the academic picture becomes more complex. Math proficiency falls to roughly half, and participation in state testing drops noticeably as well, suggesting either a sharp shift in student performance or possible barriers to full assessment participation. English language arts in eighth grade sits in the upper seventies, considerably stronger than math. A parent should ask the school directly about what happens in eighth grade—whether the shift reflects curriculum or assessment changes, student transitions, or other factors—to understand whether this represents a temporary transition or a persistent gap that might affect high school readiness.

The school is part of New York City Geographic District 6, which spans upper Manhattan from the Upper West Side to Washington Heights and Inwood. The district has experienced enrollment decline over the past several years, driven partly by fewer resident families and rising charter school enrollment. This affects the stability of school populations and the resources allocated to individual schools. At the same time, the district implemented a mandated reading curriculum overhaul in 2024, with all elementary schools now required to use one of three phonics-based programs instead of the balanced-literacy approaches some schools had used before. This is a significant and permanent shift in early literacy instruction that applies to all students in grades K through 5.

Housing in the immediate area reflects Manhattan's sustained growth in residential construction. Properties in the school's zip code trade at roughly market value for the state, with rents rising modestly year-over-year. The neighborhood itself is characteristically dense and mixed-use, with ground-floor retail, restaurants, and service businesses supporting residential and office space above. The area is highly walkable and well-served by public transit, including subway access that connects families to schools, parks, and employment across the city.

For families considering this school, the strengths are clear: consistent, above-average proficiency through grades three through seven in both reading and math, strong English language arts throughout the school, and a diverse student body in a walkable, transit-accessible neighborhood with access to city amenities. The middle school grades do see a notable change in eighth-grade math, and a parent may want to look into that directly with the school to understand what it reflects and how the school supports students through that transition. The school operates within a district experiencing structural enrollment decline and the impact of charter school competition, which is worth understanding when thinking about the long-term stability of the learning environment. The district-wide reading curriculum shift is recent and worth watching to see how it takes root, though it is grounded in current science-of-reading evidence and reflects a citywide policy rather than a school-specific change.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

New York Regents Exams

1 course reported · 2024-25

End-of-course exams required for a New York Regents diploma. Each row shows the cohort size and the share of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

Course	Students tested	% proficient
Math	31	100.0%

Math

Grade 384%

School 84% · District 53% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 25 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 484%

School 84% · District 53% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 567%

School 67% · District 53% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 676%

School 76% · District 40% · ▲ 36 pts above district

▲ 31 pts above state median · ▲ 31 pts above county median

Grade 783%

School 83% · District 51% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 849%

School 49% · District 55% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 49 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 378%

School 78% · District 47% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 486%

School 86% · District 48% · ▲ 38 pts above district

▲ 33 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 586%

School 86% · District 54% · ▲ 33 pts above district

▲ 32 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 683%

School 83% · District 42% · ▲ 41 pts above district

▲ 37 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Grade 793%

School 93% · District 43% · ▲ 49 pts above district

▲ 46 pts above state median · ▲ 37 pts above county median

Grade 879%

School 79% · District 49% · ▲ 30 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Science

Grade 569%

School 69% · District 41% · ▲ 28 pts above district

▲ 28 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 875%

School 75% · District 45% · ▲ 30 pts above district

▲ 42 pts above state median · ▲ 67 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 575%

School 75% · district not reported

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 841%

School 41% · district not reported

▼ 38 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT # 6, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income54%Higher-income90%35 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income58%Higher-income98%40 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income80%Higher-income90%10 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income67%Higher-income95%28 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income96%Higher-income90%6 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income61%Higher-income95%34 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income71%Higher-income90%19 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income65%Higher-income93%28 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income50%Higher-income75%25 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income66%Higher-income84%19 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income79%Higher-income85%7 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income43%Higher-income56%13 pp gap