Albert Shanker School for Visual and Performing Arts, Long Island City NY

Original Research by School Decision on Albert Shanker School for Visual and Performing Arts

Albert Shanker School for Visual and Performing Arts sits in Long Island City, in the heart of one of New York City's most rapidly transforming neighborhoods. The school serves grades six through eight and is a regular public school within NYC Geographic District 30. It draws from a diverse, economically challenged student body in an area undergoing substantial residential growth and change.

The student population of about four hundred sits in a neighborhood where a large share of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic reality of the area despite Long Island City's visibility as a new residential and commercial hub. The school enrolls a racially and ethnically diverse group: the enrollment is roughly half Hispanic, with meaningful populations identifying as Asian, Black, and white. The grades served—sixth through eighth—are typical for a middle school, with enrollment distributed across all three grades.

On state testing, the school's performance is uneven. In English language arts, the school sits solidly near midpoint to above in several grades: sixth-grade ELA proficiency is above the midpoint, seventh-grade ELA is above the midpoint, and eighth-grade ELA is above the midpoint. Math performance is more varied. Sixth-grade math proficiency sits at roughly the midpoint, seventh-grade math performance is notably stronger and above the midpoint, but eighth-grade math proficiency drops substantially and sits in the bottom quartile. Science testing data for the school is sparse—fifth-grade science shows no participation, and eighth-grade science participation is very low, making it difficult to assess the school's science program or trajectory. State testing data was not available for social studies in recent years, though archived 2009-10 results exist from when the school was newer.

When proficiency is averaged across all tested subjects and grades where data exists, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among the county's districts. This is a soft spot worth noting directly: performance is notably below the median for Queens County schools, and a parent may want to explore with the school what instructional supports exist, especially in eighth-grade math where proficiency is low.

The school's defining feature is its designation as a school for visual and performing arts. The data provided does not include program offerings, course descriptions, curriculum details, or how the arts focus is embedded in the daily schedule or graduation pathway, so it is not possible to characterize the depth or rigor of that program. Parents interested in the arts emphasis should ask the school directly about how visual and performing arts are taught, whether they are integrated across subjects, whether there are electives or concentrations, and how students experience them alongside core academics.

Long Island City itself is a neighborhood in flux. What was once a largely industrial waterfront has become one of the city's fastest-growing residential areas. Major employers, cultural institutions, and new housing towers cluster around transit hubs like Court Square and Queens Plaza. The waterfront parks, transit access, and emerging arts and commercial scene make it a walkable, connected neighborhood. Housing values are above the state benchmark and rental costs reflect the neighborhood's desirability and rapid growth. At the same time, publicly reported data notes that a substantial share of residents are rent-burdened despite the neighborhood's rising profile. District 30, which includes Sunnyside, Woodside, and Long Island City, recently opened a new middle school in Sunnyside to relieve overcrowding, and the district has adopted the city's phonics-based reading curriculum mandate.

The school is located on 21st Street in the core of Long Island City, embedded in a neighborhood of mixed-use development, residential towers, galleries, and commercial space rather than isolated on a campus. It serves a middle-grades population in a densely populated, transit-rich urban setting where most families do not have a car as a necessity.

A parent considering this school should understand that it offers a middle-grades program with an arts focus in a rapidly changing urban neighborhood, with modest academic proficiency on state tests overall and notably lower performance in eighth-grade mathematics. The arts mission is central to the school's identity, but detailed program information was not available in the data. Families drawn to arts education, neighborhood walkability, and urban middle-school life may find it fits; those prioritizing high state test performance should look into the school's approach to academics, particularly in math, and ask how the arts program and core instruction balance and support one another.

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Academic performance

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

New York Regents Exams

2 courses reported · 2024-25

End-of-course exams required for a New York Regents diploma. Each row shows the cohort size and the share of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

Course	Students tested	% proficient
Science	101	52.0%
Math	50	92.0%

Math

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 59% · ▼ 59 pts below district

▼ 51 pts below state median · ▼ 60 pts below county median

Grade 650%

School 50% · District 59% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 772%

School 72% · District 64% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 827%

School 27% · District 47% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 62% · ▼ 62 pts below district

▼ 54 pts below state median · ▼ 62 pts below county median

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 62% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 760%

School 60% · District 61%

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 857%

School 57% · District 63% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 50%

School 0% · District 49% · ▼ 49 pts below district

▼ 42 pts below state median · ▼ 44 pts below county median

Grade 833%

School 33% · District 38% · ▼ 4 pts below district

even with state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 830%

School 30% · district not reported

▼ 48 pts below state median · ▼ 24 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 6Lower-income55%Higher-income90%35 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income54%Higher-income90%35 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income54%Higher-income74%20 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income43%Higher-income95%52 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income68%Higher-income90%21 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income30%Higher-income0%29 pp gap