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Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker

Public, Magnet Grades PK, KG-5

2329^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,445 New York Elementary Schools

Better than 5% of New York elementary schools

Summary

Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker is an elementary school in Brooklyn, New York, serving grades PK-5 with 199 students. The school is part of the New York City Geographic District #13, which is ranked 617 out of 874 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker consistently underperforms compared to the district and state in English Language Arts (ELA) and Math proficiency rates. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, only 27.27% of 3rd graders, 23.08% of 4th graders, and 30.3% of 5th graders were proficient or better in ELA, compared to district-wide rates of 72.22%, 68.07%, and 62.76%, respectively. The school's performance also varies greatly across different student subgroups, with African American students performing relatively better than the overall student population, but Hispanic students, English Language Learners, and Special Education students all ranking in the bottom half or quarter of New York elementary schools for their respective subgroups.

Despite being located in the same district as higher-performing schools like Ps 54 Detective Rafael Ramos and the Academy of Arts and Letters, Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker struggles to match their academic achievements. The school also has a very high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 84.43% to 94.97% over the past few years, significantly higher than the district and state averages. While the school spends a relatively high amount per student, this does not seem to translate into improved academic outcomes, raising questions about the school's ability to effectively allocate and utilize its financial resources.

178

Students ?

6.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$44,979

Per pupil spending ?

94.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

114 Kosciusko St
Brooklyn, NY 11216

(718) 857-9820

District: New York City Geographic District #13

Racial breakdown:

African American:

57.3%

Hispanic:

33.1%

Asian:

3.9%

See top rated New York elementary schools

Compare Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2015 → 5th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 6 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the New York average (24% vs 55% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (5th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 19 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school24%

District avg63%

New York avg55%

2,329^th of 2,445

New York public elementary schools ?

Bottom 5%▼ down 20 pts since 2015

From bottom 24% (2015) to bottom 5% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of New York Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

18^th of 18Elementary Schools in the New York City Geographic District #13

617^th of 874New York City Geographic District #13 among New York districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	8.6	2329 of 2445	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.5	2105 of 2445	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.2	1952 of 2439	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.5	2000 of 2434	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	8.0	2091 of 2201	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	30.4	1712 of 2413	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	50.8	1179 of 2395	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2017	37.6	1509 of 2386	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2016	46.3	1276 of 2366	46.1%	★★☆☆☆
2015	26.9	1778 of 2352	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	30.8	1691 of 2345	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	26.1	1822 of 2325	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	12.7	2111 of 2320	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	11.8	2101 of 2286	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	20.8	1920 of 2263	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	20.0	1975 of 2257	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	19.1	1927 of 2227	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	15.4	1953 of 2219	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	9.7	2083 of 2206	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	27.7	705 of 928	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	37.0	575 of 927	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	51.7	364 of 857	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	46.5	462 of 936	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	52.0	351 of 891	60.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	71.1	203 of 948	78.6%	★★★★☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	28.2	904 of 1117	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	42.3	534 of 1066	49.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	33.4	702 of 1001	29.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	35.7	652 of 1027	36.5%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	8.5	2316 of 2409	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.1	1899 of 2413	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.8	1651 of 2403	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	26.3	1870 of 2401	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.0	1851 of 2357	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.9	1395 of 2338	40.3%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2022	23.9	1260 of 1503	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2024	24.8	640 of 766	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	55.3	200 of 570	64.9%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	14.4	2197 of 2407	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.7	2111 of 2411	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.6	2107 of 2400	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.7	2037 of 2400	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.4	1512 of 2358	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	57.1	980 of 2340	58.1%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	New York percentile	Rating
2025	24.2	1759 of 2134	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	50.1	813 of 2110	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	34.1	1191 of 1859	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.3	1189 of 1941	38.7%	★★☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

African American (2025)24th percentile+19 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)19th percentile+14 vs school

Special Education (2025)18th percentile+13 vs school

Homeless (2024)16th percentile+3 vs school

Hispanic (2022)16th percentile~ school

Male (2025)9th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2025)4th percentile~ school

By subject vs New York (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts27%-28 vs state

Math27%-31 vs state

Science12%-33 vs state

★

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Schools Near Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				Regents Algebra I (2025)	NY State Assessments English Language Arts (2025)						NY State Assessments Math (2025)						NY State Assessments Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Regents Algebra I End of Course	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 3rd Grade	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 4th Grade	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 5th Grade	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 6th Grade	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 7th Grade	NY State Assessments English Language Arts 8th Grade	NY State Assessments Math 3rd Grade	NY State Assessments Math 4th Grade	NY State Assessments Math 5th Grade	NY State Assessments Math 6th Grade	NY State Assessments Math 7th Grade	NY State Assessments Math 8th Grade	NY State Assessments Science 5th Grade	NY State Assessments Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	114 Kosciusko St	Brooklyn	11216	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #13	No	Yes	No	Yes	(718) 857-9820	178	28	6.3	94.9%	6 (3.4%)	102 (57.3%)	59 (33.1%)	7 (3.9%)	2 (1.1%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	8.6	2329^th of 2445 public elementary schools	4.7%		18.5	2105^th of 2445 public elementary schools	13.9%	224		27.3	23.1	30.3				30.4	19.2	30.3				12.1		$44,979	$5,723	$39,256
Ps 54 Detective Rafael Ramos	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	195 Sandford St	Brooklyn	11205	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #13	No	Yes	No	Yes	(718) 834-6752	180	19	9.6	84.4%	6 (3.3%)	70 (38.9%)	89 (49.4%)	5 (2.8%)	2 (1.1%)	3 (1.7%)	5 (2.8%)	46.6	1282^nd of 2445 public elementary schools	47.6%		26.8	1849^th of 2445 public elementary schools	24.4%	567		54.6	71.4	61.5				63.6	33.3	38.5						$49,016	$3,979	$45,037
Ps 23 Carter G Woodson	Public	PK, KG-5	545 Willoughby Ave	Brooklyn	11206	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #14	No	No	No	Yes	(718) 387-0375	230	26	8.8	93.0%	4 (1.7%)	110 (47.8%)	114 (49.6%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	28	1832^nd of 2445 public elementary schools	25.1%		37	1538^th of 2445 public elementary schools	37.1%	294		50.0	47.4	36.0				68.4	38.9	38.5				11.5		$49,491	$2,959	$46,532
Brooklyn Charter School (The)	Public, Charter	K-5	545 Willoughby Ave	Brooklyn	11206	Kings County	Brooklyn Charter School (The)	Yes	No	No	Yes	(718) 302-2085	203	7	28.4	89.7%	3 (1.5%)	144 (70.9%)	53 (26.1%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.0%)	75.5	534^th of 2445 public elementary schools	78.2%		41.8	1394^th of 2445 public elementary schools	43.0%	860		76.0	65.4	77.4				88.5	42.3	70.8				75.0		$23,576	$482	$23,094
Academy Of Arts And Letters	Public	PK, KG-8	344 Monroe St	Brooklyn	11216	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #13	No	No	No	No	(718) 789-3962	757	59	12.8	36.3%	270 (35.7%)	277 (36.6%)	100 (13.2%)	48 (6.3%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	57 (7.5%)	75.2	549^th of 2445 public elementary schools	77.5%		78.1	475^th of 2445 public elementary schools	80.6%	74	72.7	82.5	72.9	73.9	70.0	67.4	76.5	87.1	54.9	56.5	59.3	68.3	30.0	64.4	80.5	$27,471	$1,669	$25,802
Ps 25 Eubie Blake School	Public	K-5	787 Lafayette Ave	Brooklyn	11221	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #16	No	No	No	Yes	(718) 574-2336	49	9	5.4	98.0%	2 (4.1%)	21 (42.9%)	25 (51.0%)	1 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14.7	2202^nd of 2445 public elementary schools	9.9%		57.8	954^th of 2445 public elementary schools	61.0%	1248		45.5	40.0	16.7				50.0	28.6	15.4				0.0		$58,354	$3,641	$54,713
Ps 297 Abraham Stockton	Public	PK, KG-5	700 Park Ave	Brooklyn	11206	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #14	No	No	No	Yes	(718) 388-4581	196	33	5.9	94.9%	6 (3.1%)	84 (42.9%)	104 (53.1%)	1 (0.5%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	74.7	564^th of 2445 public elementary schools	76.9%		49.9	1172^nd of 2445 public elementary schools	52.1%	608		51.9	64.0	90.0				77.8	64.0	83.9				58.1		$64,917	$4,205	$60,712
Brighter Choice Community School	Public	PK, KG-5	280 Hart St	Brooklyn	11206	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #16	No	No	No	Yes	(718) 574-2378	200	19	10.5	68.5%	23 (11.5%)	84 (42.0%)	80 (40.0%)	2 (1.0%)	2 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (4.0%)	25.8	1898^th of 2445 public elementary schools	22.4%		16.6	2164^th of 2445 public elementary schools	11.5%	266		52.0	48.3	26.3				46.4	44.8	11.8				22.2		$41,638	$2,923	$38,715
Ps 44 Marcus Garvey	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	432 Monroe St	Brooklyn	11221	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #13	No	Yes	No	Yes	(718) 834-6939	120	12	10.1	88.3%	11 (9.2%)	79 (65.8%)	28 (23.3%)	2 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13.8	2223^rd of 2445 public elementary schools	9.1%		13.1	2265^th of 2445 public elementary schools	7.4%	42		13.3	31.3	50.0				13.3	37.5	28.6				21.4		$41,847	$5,749	$36,098
Ps 59 The Dawn Best School	Public	PK, KG-5	211 Throop Ave	Brooklyn	11206	Kings County	New York City Geographic District #14	No	No	No	Yes	(718) 443-3600	265	33	8.1	95.1%	1 (0.4%)	120 (45.3%)	132 (49.8%)	2 (0.8%)	3 (1.1%)	2 (0.8%)	3 (1.1%)	17.3	2147^th of 2445 public elementary schools	12.2%		11	2317^th of 2445 public elementary schools	5.2%	170		44.4	29.0	45.7				41.0	26.8	27.8				19.4		$38,523	$4,560	$33,962

Frequently Asked Questions about Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker

What district is Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker in?

New York City Geographic District #13

How many students attend Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker?

In the 2024-25 school year, 178 students attended Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker.

Is Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker a good school?

Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker ranks in the bottom 4.7% of New York elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker?

Students at Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker are 57% African American, 33% Hispanic, 4% Asian, 3% White, 1% American Indian.

Rate Ps 256 Benjamin Banneker!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau, the WNYC and the New York State Department of Health and the NY State Education Department.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.