Original Research by School Decision on Ps 372 Children's School (the)
PS 372 Children's School is a public special education school in Brooklyn serving children in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. It sits in a city-owned building on Carroll Street in the Park Slope neighborhood, an area of brownstones and tree-lined blocks with high walkability and strong transit access via the subway and bus network. The neighborhood is part of a borough experiencing steady residential growth and construction.
The school is part of NYC Special Schools District 75, the district-within-a-district that operates specialized schools for students with disabilities across the five boroughs. District 75 schools serve students whose disabilities require intensive support; these are not mainstream schools with inclusion programs. Rather, they provide full-day, specialized classrooms and curriculum adapted to each student's learning profile.
Enrollment at PS 372 is small to mid-sized for a special education setting. The student body is economically diverse: about one-third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, while roughly two-thirds do not, a sign of mixed household income. Racially and ethnically, the school enrolls white, Hispanic, Asian, Black, and multiracial students in roughly equal proportions across those groups, making it a well-mixed community by race and ethnicity. The school draws from a broad geographic area across Brooklyn because families choose District 75 placements based on their child's needs and available capacity rather than neighborhood assignment.
State assessment data and graduation rates are not applicable to this school because it does not serve tested grades in the way mainstream schools do. District 75 schools operate on individualized education plans aligned to students' learning profiles and functional needs. Some students work on grade-level curriculum; others work on alternative, life-skills, or functional academics curricula. The comparison metrics used for typical public schools do not fit this setting.
What families should know about District 75 broadly is relevant here. The district has adopted the citywide NYC Reads literacy curriculum, a phonics-based, science-of-reading approach, though implementation across District 75 schools remains flexible to accommodate the wide range of student needs. This means more consistent, evidence-based reading instruction, which is a strength. The district also faced budget pressures in late 2023 that threatened staffing and programming, but the Education Department reversed those cuts in early 2024 and confirmed no school-based reductions. That episode signaled the funding volatility families should monitor. On the positive side, the city has been steadily expanding District 75 capacity across boroughs since 2023-24, opening new programs and sites to reduce seat deficits and allow students to attend closer to home.
For a parent with a child who has an individualized education plan requiring intensive support or specialized curriculum, PS 372 offers the setting District 75 provides: full-time specialized classes, individualized planning, and a small school environment where staff know every student deeply. Carroll Street location in Park Slope places the school in a dense, walkable, well-serviced neighborhood with good transit connections. The economic and racial mix of the student body reflects Brooklyn's diversity. Parents may want to visit and discuss with the school how it structures its curriculum (grade-level, functional, or hybrid), what therapies and supports are available on site, and how the school coordinates with families around each child's goals and progress. These specifics will vary by student profile and classroom assignment and are best learned through direct conversation with admissions and the special education coordinator.
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