Park Avenue School, Port Chester NY

Original Research by School Decision on Park Avenue School

Park Avenue School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Port Chester, a dense, walkable village in southwestern Westchester County with a long history as both a commercial center and working-class residential neighborhood. The school sits within one of the county's most culturally diverse communities, where a large immigrant population anchors a lively downtown anchored by the Metro-North station, independent restaurants, and family-owned shops.

The school's enrollment of roughly four hundred fifty students reflects Port Chester's demographic profile. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller populations of white, Asian, Black, and multiracial students. The data sections do not report the number of English learners or students with IEPs, so a parent may want to look into that further with the school.

State testing results from the most recent year show math and English language arts proficiency rates in the range of the low to mid-forties and low fifties across grades three through five. Fifth-grade science proficiency was slightly above that band. These results place the school below the midpoint among districts in Westchester County when looking at overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades. The school's participation rates in state testing are strong, ranging from the mid-nineties to one hundred percent, indicating nearly all enrolled students sat for assessments.

The district that operates Park Avenue has launched several changes that shape the environment. Beginning in spring 2023, Port Chester-Rye schools began an overhaul of their K-8 mathematics curriculum, moving toward problem-based instruction centered on student thinking and collaboration, with closer alignment between elementary and middle grades. This signals a shift in how math is taught that affects current and incoming students. The district also operates a free Universal Pre-Kindergarten program for resident four-year-olds, delivered in partnership with a private Catholic school, which represents a significant resource for families with young children in a region where private preschool tuition is otherwise steep.

Port Chester itself is in sustained growth. The village completed a form-based rezoning in 2020 and now carries Pro-Housing Community certification, spurring transit-oriented mixed-use development. Several thousand new residential units are approved or under construction, including the redevelopment of a former hospital site into a large mixed-use community with both market-rate and affordable homes. The housing market has strengthened in recent months, with home values and rents showing modest appreciation and active listing inventory expanding. A short commute to Metro-North and Grand Central anchors the area's appeal to families working in or commuting to New York City.

The school sits within a residential neighborhood served by the village's sidewalk network rather than on a separated suburban campus, and walkability to amenities is a defining feature of daily life here. Whether this density and urban character appeals to a family depends on preference; it is neither better nor worse than a quieter suburban setting, but it is distinctly different. Park Avenue is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and serves the neighborhood students assigned to it through the district.

The state testing results suggest that academic performance is an area a parent may want to examine closely against their expectations and against the district's stated curriculum priorities. The district's multi-year commitment to mathematics curriculum reform offers a pathway toward improvement, but current proficiency rates are not high. At the same time, the school's strong test participation and Port Chester's investment in schools and community infrastructure indicate a district that is actively engaged in supporting its students. A family considering Park Avenue should visit the school, speak with current families, and ask the district about specific supports available for students who need additional academic help.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 40% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 451%

School 51% · District 51%

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 38% · ▲ 9 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 344%

School 44% · District 36% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Grade 448%

School 48% · District 39% · ▲ 9 pts above district

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

Grade 551%

School 51% · District 41% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Science

Grade 552%

School 52% · District 35% · ▲ 17 pts above district

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

Social studies

Grade 589%

School 89% · district not reported

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

This schoolPORT CHESTER-RYE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT, 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-income38%Higher-income65%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income39%Higher-income67%28 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income71%25 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income39%Higher-income56%16 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income37%Higher-income81%44 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income44%Higher-income60%16 pp gap