Ps 112 Dutch Kills, Long Island City NY

Original Research by School Decision on Ps 112 Dutch Kills

PS 112 Dutch Kills sits in Long Island City, a fast-growing, transit-rich waterfront neighborhood in western Queens that has transformed from industrial character into one of the city's densest and most dynamic residential areas. The school serves grades Pre-K through fifth, drawing families from a neighborhood defined by new housing, walkable streets anchored by subway lines and ferry access, and a cultural identity mixing arts, commerce, and rapid development.

The enrollment is small for an urban elementary school, with modest representation across all early grades and slightly smaller cohorts in upper elementary. The vast majority of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which tracks with the neighborhood's composition: the student body is predominantly Hispanic, with meaningful populations of Asian and Black students, and small numbers of white and multiracial children. Demographic and English learner data from the state are not available in the records examined, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about supports and services available to newcomers to English or students with disabilities.

Academic performance on state testing in math and English language arts runs well below the midpoint among Queens County districts. In math, proficiency across third through fifth grade averages in the low-to-mid range. Third graders reach the mid-point; fourth graders fall noticeably lower; fifth graders recover somewhat but remain modest. English language arts follows a similar shape: third grade sits at just under the middle, fourth grade dips further, and fifth grade climbs slightly. Fifth-grade science proficiency is similarly low. This is a school where many students are not yet meeting state standards by the end of elementary school. The state testing participation rates are strong, in the mid-to-high eighties and nineties, so these results reflect classroom performance rather than test-taking barriers.

PS 112 sits within New York City Geographic District 30, which serves Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, and surrounding neighborhoods. The district has added classroom capacity through a new middle school that opened recently in Sunnyside, and all elementary schools in District 30 now teach reading using one of three city-approved phonics-based curricula, a shift that affects how families experience early literacy instruction. The district has also expanded access to accelerated elementary programs as part of the citywide shift away from a single entrance test toward a grades-and-lottery model, changes that have generated discussion among parents about what acceleration means and who it serves.

Long Island City itself is dense and walkable, with extensive subway and bus access, bike infrastructure, and waterfront parks along the East River. It is one of the fastest-growing neighborhoods in the city, with new residential towers rising regularly alongside art galleries, studios, and converted industrial buildings. Housing values are substantially higher than the state average, and median rents are climbing; a significant share of residents are rent-burdened despite the neighborhood's economic growth. Major employers including JetBlue, The New York Times, Uber, and Silvercup Studios anchor the area, and LaGuardia Community College sits at a major transit hub. The environment reads as a working neighborhood in the midst of rapid change rather than a stable residential enclave.

For a family in PS 112's zone, the school offers full-day pre-K and K programs and consistent access to an early elementary pathway within the neighborhood. State testing results, however, show that most students are not reaching proficiency in core academics by the upper elementary grades. A parent interested in this school would want to understand what academic supports exist, what the school's instructional approach and reading curriculum look like in practice, and what the school's plan is for students who are not yet meeting grade-level standards before they move to middle school.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 340%

School 40% · District 65% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 30 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 67% · ▼ 34 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 35 pts below county median

Grade 548%

School 48% · District 59% · ▼ 11 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 342%

School 42% · District 59% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 437%

School 37% · District 61% · ▼ 24 pts below district

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

Grade 546%

School 46% · District 62% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Science

Grade 538%

School 38% · District 49% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 580%

School 80% · district not reported

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

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #30, 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-income35%Higher-income89%54 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income43%Higher-income80%37 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income38%Higher-income60%23 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income44%Higher-income83%39 pp gap