Kappa V (knowledge and Power Prep Academy), Brooklyn NY

Original Research by School Decision on Kappa V (knowledge and Power Prep Academy)

Kappa V (Knowledge and Power Prep Academy) is a middle school serving grades six through eight in Brooklyn's East Flatbush neighborhood. It sits in a school district that has no zoned boundaries, so families districtwide choose their middle schools rather than attending by address. The school's enrollment is small and has remained flat, with students spread across its three grades. The overwhelming majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Black with a smaller Hispanic population. A very small number of white students also attend.

On state math assessments, proficiency lags notably. In sixth grade, just over one-third of students tested reached proficiency, with seventh grade reaching about two-fifths proficient and eighth grade showing zero proficiency among the small cohort tested. The gap widens considerably: seventh grade outpaced sixth on average scores, but eighth grade fell back. Participation in eighth-grade math testing was very low, which may reflect the small cohort size or other factors a parent would want to explore with the school.

Reading performance, measured in English language arts, is stronger than math. Sixth graders achieved proficiency at a rate around three-fifths, seventh graders at better than half, and eighth graders at roughly half. These are solid results for the grades tested, suggesting the school may be placing more instructional weight on literacy. District 23 adopted the Into Reading curriculum districtwide beginning in 2023, a phonics-based approach mandated by the city; that change shapes how literacy is taught across all elementary schools in the district, though this school serves only middle grades.

Eighth-grade science proficiency was low, at one-fifth. This is the only grade tested in science under state assessment, and it points to a softer area that a parent might discuss with staff about student support and course design.

The school sits in a neighborhood context of dense, walkable Brooklyn with strong transit access and sidewalk life. Brooklyn as a whole is experiencing steady housing growth and new development, particularly in downtown and residential corridors. The local economy is broad, anchored by hospitals, higher education, and growing tech employment. Median home values in the zip code are above the statewide benchmark, and rents have declined slightly year-over-year, though both remain at a premium reflective of Brooklyn's market position.

District 23 has experienced sustained enrollment decline over the past several years, a pattern that shapes school stability and program continuity. The district is also non-zoned, meaning families select among available schools rather than having assigned seats by neighborhood. Beginning in 2023, the district returned to middle school admissions with academic screens at the discretion of the superintendent, a shift from the pandemic-era lottery system.

When positioned against other schools in Kings County that serve middle grades, Kappa V's overall proficiency index falls in the bottom quartile. The school's reading performance is its relative strength, but its math and science results are notably lower than the county-level schools it sits alongside. A parent considering this school would want to discuss with staff their approach to math intervention, their response to recent science results, and how they support students in the transition to eighth grade and beyond, particularly given the significant drop in eighth-grade math proficiency.

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Academic performance

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

New York Regents Exams

1 course 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
Math	25	36.0%

Math

Grade 633%

School 33% · District 44% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 742%

School 42% · District 44% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

Grade 80%

School 0% · District 23% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 37 pts below state median · ▼ 40 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 662%

School 62% · District 41% · ▲ 21 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 757%

School 57% · District 44% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 849%

School 49% · District 40% · ▲ 9 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Science

Grade 820%

School 20% · District 20%

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 835%

School 35% · district not reported

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #23, 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 7Lower-income48%Higher-income100%52 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 7Lower-income36%Higher-income67%31 pp gap