I.S. 303 Herbert S. Eisenberg

IS 303, located on the border of Brighton Beach and Coney Island, serves a racially and ethnically mixed group of children including many who speak Urdu, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese or Bengali at home. A zoned neighborhood school, IS 303 is also is open to children from across District 21.

The school has a class in “news literacy” that teaches children to evaluate whether information they read on the Internet is accurate and reliable. “You need to think about how to arm yourself to fact-check this world,” a teacher told The New York Times.

A “family literacy class,” held on Saturdays, allows parents and children who are new immigrants to learn together, according to the school’s Comprehensive Educationa, Plan. Parents and children also learn about US government.  

The school received funds to upgrade the library and auditorium in 2018, according to City Council member Mark Treyger.

A downside: Some teachers complain about problems with order and discipline.

Admissions: Zoned school, District 21 choice. (Clara Hemphill, web reports, April 2019; photo from school's website)