The top reported proficiency rate is 67% in Math. The lowest is 27% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Jermaine L Green Stem Institute of Queens (the)
The Jermaine L Green STEM Institute of Queens is a small public elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Jamaica, Queens. The school sits in a rapidly redeveloping neighborhood anchored by Jamaica Station, one of the busiest transit hubs on Long Island, and surrounded by new mixed-use residential towers rising along Sutphin and Archer Avenues. The area is dense, diverse, and walkable, with a strong commercial downtown core and quieter residential blocks further out. Housing costs in the Jamaica zip code have been climbing steadily, and Jamaica itself is experiencing significant new residential growth.
The school enrolls approximately five hundred students, with a student body that is primarily Black, with a meaningful Latino population, and smaller numbers of Asian, multiracial, and other students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school in a low-income enrollment context. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available. The school is not a charter school, and New York's Title I status for the school was not reported.
On state testing in mathematics, the school shows a grading pattern. Third-grade students achieved proficiency at a stronger rate than older grades; fourth graders also performed at a respectable level; fifth graders dipped to around sixty percent proficiency. In English Language Arts, performance is considerably lower across all tested grades. Third graders reached about half proficiency; fourth and fifth graders were also around half or slightly above. In fifth-grade science, the school reported a much lower proficiency rate, in the high twenties. Across the board, math proficiency exceeds ELA proficiency by a meaningful margin, and science trails both.
When placed against other districts in Queens County, the school's overall proficiency index falls below the midpoint. This positioning suggests room for improvement in reading, writing, and science instruction alongside areas of relative strength in elementary mathematics.
The school is part of District 28, which serves Jamaica and surrounding neighborhoods. Starting in the 2024-25 school year, all District 28 elementary schools were required to adopt one of three state-approved reading curriculums aligned with the science of reading, ending the practice of schools choosing their own approaches. This mandate has since been partially loosened to give teachers more pacing flexibility, but it remains in place. District 28 also expanded its Gifted and Talented program using a universal screening model rather than a single high-stakes test, broadening access to accelerated third-grade seats across all schools in the district.
For families in Jamaica, a significant development is the approval of Queens High School for the Sciences to relocate to a new building in Jamaica within the district starting in the 2026-27 school year, with the capacity to expand substantially in the years following. This specialized high school currently reserves a portion of seats for residents of Districts 27, 28, and 29, making it a local option for selective-admissions secondary education.
The school operates within a neighborhood undergoing active transformation. Jamaica Station connects the Long Island Rail Road to three subway lines, the AirTrain to JFK, and dozens of bus routes, making it a major transit point. The downtown has longstanding civic and cultural anchors including the Queens County Courthouse, York College, performing arts centers, and the Queens Public Library Central Branch. New housing development, particularly along the Sutphin and Archer corridors, is adding hundreds of apartments aimed at mixed-income residents. Street-life conditions remain challenging in places, with traffic congestion and some areas of poor sidewalk conditions reported, though the neighborhood remains dense and walkable overall.
A parent considering this school would want to look further into the school's specific approach to reading instruction under the new curriculum mandate and how it addresses the reading and writing performance gap visible in current testing. The school's STEM focus in its name should also prompt inquiry into how science is being taught and supported, given the notably lower science proficiency observed. The rapid neighborhood transformation also means the student composition and housing market context are shifting in real time.
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