Ps 203 Floyd Bennett School, Brooklyn NY

Original Research by School Decision on Ps 203 Floyd Bennett School

PS 203 Floyd Bennett School is a small public elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in the Sheepshead Bay area of Brooklyn. The school serves a student body drawn almost entirely from the surrounding community, with an enrollment of about five hundred students spread across seven grades. The population is predominantly Black, with sizable shares of Asian and Hispanic students, and a large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating an economically working community.

The school's test results show a profile typical of schools serving economically disadvantaged neighborhoods: uneven performance across subjects and grades, with clear strength in some areas and weaker results elsewhere. In mathematics, students in the top grade tested, fifth, perform substantially above students in third and fourth grade. A strong majority of fifth graders meet state proficiency standards in both math and English language arts, with reading results notably stronger than writing. By contrast, third and fourth grade results fall to below half proficiency in both subjects. In science, tested only in fifth grade, proficiency drops to around a third of students. The data suggests an instructional environment where some students, particularly those in fifth grade, move into stronger academic standing, but where math and ELA work remains uneven across grades, and science engagement appears limited. A parent may want to ask the school directly about the strategies driving fifth-grade gains and what support looks like for younger grades.

Fifth grade's strength is meaningful. When measured across all tested subjects and grades, the school sits in the top quartile relative to other schools in Kings County, an accomplished position. The contrast between upper and lower grades points to either a developmental shift as students mature, targeted intervention in the upper grades, or some mix of both. Without data on attendance, discipline, or staffing, it is hard to identify the mechanism, but the pattern is real enough to notice.

The school is embedded in a dense, walkable Brooklyn neighborhood with extensive transit access and retail-lined streets. The Sheepshead Bay area is a long-established residential and commercial district with nearby waterfront redevelopment. Housing in the school's zip code has appreciated in value over the past year, and rental costs have risen, reflecting the borough's strong growth in housing construction and residential demand. The neighborhood is typical of stable, working-class Brooklyn where local parks, storefronts, and transit nodes structure daily life rather than car dependence.

Enrollment data for students with disabilities or English learners is not available, so details about specialized services or bilingual offerings could not be assessed. The school's official website did not appear in available results, so specific details about classroom organization, special programs, or parent engagement structures could not be drawn from school sources. A prospective parent should contact the school directly to understand how it addresses students across a range of readiness levels and what additional services or programs exist beyond the core academics shown in test data.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 351%

School 51% · District 65% · ▼ 15 pts below district

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

Grade 444%

School 44% · District 62% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 577%

School 77% · District 60% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 352%

School 52% · District 61% · ▼ 9 pts below district

even with state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 59% · ▼ 16 pts below district

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

Grade 588%

School 88% · District 62% · ▲ 26 pts above district

▲ 34 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Science

Grade 536%

School 36% · District 45% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Social studies

Grade 589%

School 89% · district not reported

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

This schoolNEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #22, 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-income47%Higher-income86%39 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income39%Higher-income57%18 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income85%Higher-income100%15 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income47%Higher-income75%28 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income42%Higher-income50%8 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income73%Higher-income100%27 pp gap