Ps 309 George E Wibecan Preparatory Academy (the), Brooklyn NY

Original Research by School Decision on Ps 309 George E Wibecan Preparatory Academy (the)

PS 309 George E Wibecan Preparatory Academy sits in Williamsburg, a neighborhood in Brooklyn that has undergone rapid residential development in recent years. The school serves pre-K through fifth grade, a small enrollment spanning early childhood through upper elementary years. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Black and Hispanic, with each group roughly equal in size.

The school's academic profile is uneven across subjects and grade levels. In English language arts, performance is stronger: fourth graders achieved full proficiency, while fifth graders reached about half. Third-grade ELA proficiency was in the upper-middle range. Math proficiency shows more volatility. Fourth graders performed very strongly, but third and fifth graders fell into the lower-middle range. Science results, available only for fifth grade, showed low proficiency. The school's overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades places it in the top quartile relative to other schools in Kings County, though the composition of that metric reflects the uneven grade-level and subject-level picture.

Test participation rates ranged from about half to roughly two-thirds of eligible students across subjects and grades, which a parent may want to look into further with the school. Small cohort sizes in tested grades mean that individual student performance carries weight in the reported percentages, so these numbers can shift considerably from year to year.

The school is part of New York City Geographic District 16, which covers much of Bedford-Stuyvesant and surrounding areas. The district adopted the Into Reading curriculum, a science-of-reading approach, a few years before the city mandate took effect, so elementary classrooms now follow that single, structured curriculum. Under the state's class-size reduction law, the school should see smaller classes in grades K through 3 as that mandate phases in, with priority for high-poverty schools like this one.

Brooklyn's Williamsburg neighborhood is walkable and transit-accessible, with dense development and an active street life. The housing market has seen substantial growth and new construction in recent years. The area is a mix of residential blocks and commercial corridors, characteristic of the broader borough. Home values in the 11221 zip code are well above the state median, and rents have risen modestly in the past year.

Enrollment data shows numbers across all early grades. The count of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch reflects the community's economic need. The school's designation as a regular public school means it follows standard district enrollment and curriculum policies rather than a specialized or charter model. No information was available about special education services, English learner supports, or staff size, so a parent seeking detail on those programs should reach out to the school directly. State testing data was not available for social studies or for grades K-2, both because those grades are not tested at the state level or because testing is not administered at those points in the year.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 346%

School 46% · District 68% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

Grade 488%

School 88% · District 60% · ▲ 28 pts above district

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 44% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 67% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Grade 4100%

School 100% · District 63% · ▲ 37 pts above district

▲ 47 pts above state median · ▲ 38 pts above county median

Grade 556%

School 56% · District 54% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Science

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 34% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 561%

School 61% · district not reported

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #16, 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.