Lucero Elementary School PS 311

Lucero Elementary School, PS 311, is a zoned neighborhood school near Grand Concourse in the Bronx. Its hallways, classrooms and library are welcoming and colorful spaces, embodying the school slogan that encourages all its students to “shine brightly.” The school earns high marks for trust among the staff, developing strong ties with families, and maintaining order and discipline, according to the Annual School Survey.

Lucero offers a Dual Language program in Spanish that promises to give students the opportunity to preserve and celebrate their own culture while learning a second language and culture, according to the school’s Comprehensive Educational Plan. About half of Lucero’s students are English Language Learners, many of whom did exceptionally well on the most recent state reading exam, doubling the city average for that group of students. While test scores for the whole student body are slightly below the citywide averages, they do outperform other schools in District 9 and have seen dramatic growth in the past few years.

The most recent Quality Review celebrates the school’s high expectations for students and the way it helps students meet those expectations. It also highlights the Community Circle meetings each week that focus on one of the school’s core values: Perseverance, Enthusiasm, Activism, Collaboration, and Empathy. Parents learn about student progress on those values and classroom activities through weekly communication folders and are invited to the classroom for “learning walks” twice a month.

Parents can also participate in the Gardening Club run by community partner Edible Schoolyard, which also teaches cooking classes to the entire school in their kitchen classroom. Teachers post bilingual recipes of the week, like one for chickpea salad, in their classrooms and on Facebook to encourage healthy eating and family togetherness.

Lucero has a full-time music teacher that serves all grades, and 4th and 5th grade students also learn dance through community partner Dancing Classrooms. It shares a building with another elementary school, the Walton Avenue School.

ADMISSIONS: Zoned neighborhood school. (Nicole Mader, web reports, April 2020).