Brooklyn Science and Engineering Academy

Brooklyn Science and Engineering Academy was founded in 2014 as a middle school focusing on science, technology and math. 

To accomplish this, teachers develop projects addressing real-life, relevant problems, many of which, according to a school video, result in a final product,  such as a pop-up book, model of a bridge or wind-driven pulley system. These projects are designed to engage students at all academic levels and sometimes include children from different grades or span two or more subject areas. 

School leaders also take advantage of programs offered outside the school, such as the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program and a Wildlife Conservation Society initiative examining relationships between cities and wildlife, to provide more opportunities. The school also has a partnership with St. John’s University.

Despite its STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) focus, students fare far better on their standardized English language arts exam, than on math. Math scores at the school are below average for the city and for comparable schools.

Classes are small and all students have a daily advisory period focusing on goals, behavior and other social issues. The school offers summer and weekend programs for extra help or additional academics.

By all indicators, the school is safe and supportive, with students giving their classes high marks and an unusually high percentage of teachers saying students work hard and have good classroom discussions. Overall teachers show a high degree of job satisfaction with virtually all saying they enjoying coming to work and would recommend the school to parents and to other teachers.

Brooklyn Science and Engineering is housed in a large building it shares with PS 244 Richard R. Green. Both schools use the cafeteria and gymnasium.

Special education: The school has both self-contained classes for students with disabilities and team-teaching classes with a mix of general and special education students.

Admissions: Brooklyn Science and Engineering is open to all students in District 18. They are selected at random, and the school fills all of its seats. (Gail Robinson, web reports, May 2019)