The top reported proficiency rate is 53% in Science. The lowest is 19% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Phillips Avenue School
Phillips Avenue School sits on the western edge of Riverhead's downtown, serving children from pre-kindergarten through fourth grade within the Riverhead Central School District. Riverhead itself is an unusual place on Long Island: it is Suffolk County's seat, anchored by a civic and commercial downtown at the head of the Peconic River, while the surrounding town is broadly rural and agricultural, part of what has become one of New York's wine-growing regions. A major Town Square redevelopment broke ground in late 2025, publicly reported as the first visible step in a long-awaited downtown revitalization backed by both federal and state grants. Homes near the school carry values well above both state and national benchmarks, and rents in the area consume a substantial share of a typical household's income, so the housing market here is among the higher-cost corners of an already expensive county.
The school's enrollment is large relative to what one might expect for its grade band, running from pre-K through grade four across multiple grade levels of roughly similar size. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller shares of white and Black students. Close to half of all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure that places this school among the higher-need elementary buildings in its district. Data on English learner rates and special education rates were not available in this data set.
State assessment results on the New York State Testing Program are available for third and fourth grade in English language arts and math, which are the grades the state tests. Science results are present but from an earlier school year, not the most recent. In both ELA and math, proficiency rates at the third and fourth grade levels are low, placing the school in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Suffolk County on an overall proficiency index. To put that plainly: only a small fraction of tested students scored at or above the proficient threshold in either subject at either grade. The science result from the earlier year was considerably more encouraging, with roughly half of fourth graders scoring proficient or above, though that figure is dated and may not reflect current conditions. Parents who want to understand recent science performance would be well-served to ask the school directly, since only the older year appears in this data.
Two district-level developments bear directly on Phillips Avenue. First, when temporary federal COVID relief funding ended, the district publicly reported eliminating a substantial number of faculty and staff positions for the 2024-25 school year, with elementary schools absorbing the largest share of cuts. Among the positions reduced at the elementary level were academic intervention specialists, teaching assistants, a guidance counselor, and a psychologist. For a school whose test scores already suggest students need targeted support, that reduction in instructional and counseling staffing is something a prospective family would want to ask about concretely.
Second, Phillips Avenue is historically the home of the district's dual language program, where English- and Spanish-speaking students learn side by side in both languages. That program expanded to all four elementary schools in recent years, was then proposed for consolidation back to Phillips Avenue alone during the 2024-25 budget process, and was ultimately partially preserved for the existing kindergarten cohort through federal Title funding after significant parent pushback. Families drawn to the bilingual pathway should ask the district directly about the program's current scope, because its continuity has been uncertain and its funding sources have shifted.
On the facilities side, voters approved kitchen and cafeteria renovations at Phillips Avenue in a May 2025 capital vote, publicly reported as funded largely from existing reserves rather than new debt. A broader district facilities bond that would have addressed overcrowding was voted down several years earlier, and the high school and at least one other school have been publicly reported as operating over capacity. Whether that enrollment pressure affects Phillips Avenue's building conditions is worth confirming with the district.
The combination of a high-need student population, recent staffing reductions in exactly the roles that support struggling learners, and below-average proficiency results makes the academic support picture here one a parent should press the school on directly.
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