The top reported proficiency rate is 39% in English language arts. The lowest is 0% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Bronx Latin School
Bronx Latin School is a public middle and high school serving grades six through twelve in the South Bronx. The school enrolls a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial share of Black students, and an overwhelming majority of students from families qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Nearly all students live in economic circumstances marked by significant material constraints.
The school's state testing results in the most recent year show proficiency rates that are notably low across tested subjects and grades. In English language arts, sixth-graders are at the lower end of the spectrum, with about a quarter meeting proficiency; seventh-graders show modest improvement, with roughly a third proficient; and eighth-graders exceed both lower grades, with about half meeting the proficiency standard. In mathematics, the pattern is weaker: sixth-grade proficiency sits at roughly one-fifth, seventh-grade at about a third, and eighth-grade results are not available. When the school's overall proficiency across tested grades and subjects is compared to other districts in Bronx County, it falls in the bottom quartile. Graduation rate data was not available. No data on chronic absenteeism, special education enrollment, English learner status, or school discipline was accessible. State testing covers only grades six through eight; results for high school grades are not provided by the state assessment system.
The school's size is modest, with student population distributed unevenly across its seven grade bands. Sixth and ninth grades are notably larger; seventh and eighth grades are considerably smaller. This compression in the middle grades may reflect particular enrollment or transition patterns in the school's pipeline.
Bronx Latin sits within New York City Geographic District 12, which has recently undergone lasting changes to its curriculum frameworks. District 12 was among the first wave of districts required to adopt a mandated reading curriculum under the citywide NYC Reads literacy initiative, selecting the Into Reading program from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This represents a shift from individual school choice toward a phonics-based, science-of-reading approach across all elementary schools in the district. For mathematics, the district is currently implementing the Illustrative Mathematics program in its middle schools and high school Algebra 1 courses, and beginning fall 2026, elementary schools will transition to the same program. These changes affect how and what students learn across subject areas and represent substantial pedagogical shifts toward problem-based, conceptual instruction.
The broader Bronx context includes significant housing investment and growth in affordable residential development, with major waterfront and neighborhood projects underway. The borough offers extensive public transportation through subway and bus networks, with planned Metro-North expansions that will add new stations to the region. Parks, libraries, and cultural institutions including the Bronx Zoo and New York Botanical Garden are major civic anchors. Commercial and institutional life is organized around neighborhood hubs and transit nodes rather than a single downtown, with health care anchoring the economy.
A parent evaluating Bronx Latin may want to look into the school's current instructional strategies and any support mechanisms in place given the proficiency profile, and to ask about how the new mandated curricula are being implemented at the school level.
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