Original Research by School Decision on Dr Susan S Mckinney Secondary School of the Arts
Dr. Susan S. McKinney Secondary School of the Arts sits in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, as a high school serving grades nine through twelve. The school operates under New York City's geographic District 13, which covers central Brooklyn from Park Slope through Bedford-Stuyvesant.
The school is small, with enrollment well below what a typical New York City high school holds. The student body is predominantly Black, with a substantial Hispanic enrollment and a handful of students from other racial backgrounds. A very high share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic circumstances of the neighborhood.
This is not a selective or screened school. It is a regular public high school with an arts focus, and the program offerings include theater. Beyond that, the school's course catalog and specific arts pathways are not detailed in available data, so a parent may want to visit the school directly or use the school's website to learn what arts electives, performance opportunities, and integrated curriculum the arts mission actually delivers in practice.
State testing data, graduation rates, chronic absenteeism figures, and other outcome measures are not available for this school, so there is no public record of its academic performance to review.
The school sits in a dense, walkable Brooklyn neighborhood with active street life, subway access, and neighborhood retail and services within a short walk. Fort Greene itself is a mix of brownstone residential blocks and commercial corridors. Housing in Brooklyn has appreciated significantly, and rents remain high for the region, reflecting the borough's strong growth and development over recent years. The neighborhood hosts cultural anchors like the Brooklyn Academy of Music and is undergoing residential expansion.
One important context for families considering this school: the school was recently restructured. Until the 2024-2025 school year, it operated as a 6-12 school serving middle and high school grades. It now operates as a 9-12 school only, which means it no longer serves sixth through eighth grade. For families with a middle-grade child interested in an arts program, this means the school is no longer an option at that level within District 13.
District 13 middle schools currently use a lottery-based, screen-free admissions process with majority seat reservations for low-income students and those in temporary housing. This shapes how families access middle schools across the district, though it does not affect high school placement directly. The truncation of McKinney from 6-12 to 9-12 is a lasting change; any family seeking middle-grades arts programming in the district will need to explore other options.
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