Bronx Academy of Promise Charter School, Bronx NY

Original Research by School Decision on Bronx Academy of Promise Charter School

Bronx Academy of Promise Charter School is a prekindergarten through eighth-grade charter school serving a small student body in the Inwood neighborhood of the Bronx. Nearly all students (nearly all) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the enrollment is majority Hispanic with a substantial Black population; the school draws from neighborhoods where poverty concentrates. The school operates as its own district-level entity rather than within a traditional district structure.

The school's state test results show uneven performance across grade levels and subjects. In math, third graders reach proficiency at a meaningful rate, fifth graders perform above that level, and seventh graders show the strongest results. The fourth-grade math cohort falls well below these peers. In English language arts, the fifth, seventh, and third grade cohorts show proficiency above the midpoint, while the fourth and sixth grades register in the low-to-middle range. Eighth-grade proficiency in ELA lands below the median. Science results, where the school reports them, fall in the lower half: fifth-grade science proficiency sits well below half, and eighth-grade science shows particularly weak attainment. Across the county's charter and traditional district schools, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile, a meaningful strength given the predominantly low-income student population it serves.

The pattern visible in these grade-level results suggests inconsistency in student growth or in instructional approach across grade bands. Fourth and sixth grades, both middle elementary to early middle years, emerge as softer spots. A parent considering the school may want to ask directly about curriculum continuity, transition practices between grade levels, and what the school sees as the drivers of strength in seventh and eighth grade math, given that growth there appears notable.

In 2024 the school received a five-year charter renewal with an important caveat: the state reduced its authorized enrollment ceiling substantially. The school has been expanding its pre-K program and now offers two additional classrooms serving younger children, creating a pipeline into the primary grades. That expansion signals confidence in the school's early-childhood work but also reflects a deliberate scaling strategy focused on depth rather than enrollment growth.

The Bronx itself is in a phase of significant housing development. Home values and rental costs in the zip code where the school sits sit well below the state median; the area remains affordable relative to much of New York. Major employers concentrate in health care, with Montefiore Medical Center anchoring the regional economy. The borough is well-served by transit, including subway lines and Metro-North service, with additional commuter rail stations planned. Parks and civic institutions are woven into the neighborhood fabric; walkability is sufficient for daily errands without a car. New affordable housing units continue to move through construction pipelines across the borough, which may affect the demographic and economic stability of the communities the school serves.

This is a school operating at small to mid-size scale (the enrollment is modest for its grade span) in a high-poverty area. The test results show strength in specific grades and subjects, particularly upper-middle grades in math and ELA, paired with weaker performance in science and volatility across elementary grades. The school's recent charter renewal with enrollment reduction signals a shift toward a tighter operational model. Families should understand both the school's demonstrated strengths and the grade-level inconsistencies as they evaluate fit.

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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
Math	61	31.0%
Science	42	0.0%

Math

Grade 365%

School 65% · district not reported

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

Grade 442%

School 42% · district not reported

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

Grade 569%

School 69% · district not reported

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 654%

School 54% · district not reported

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

Grade 773%

School 73% · district not reported

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 885%

School 85% · district not reported

▲ 47 pts above state median · ▲ 48 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 370%

School 70% · district not reported

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 449%

School 49% · district not reported

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

Grade 575%

School 75% · district not reported

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 657%

School 57% · district not reported

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

Grade 776%

School 76% · district not reported

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Grade 863%

School 63% · district not reported

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

Science

Grade 547%

School 47% · district not reported

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

Grade 833%

School 33% · district not reported

even with state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

This schoolDistrict average, 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.