ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE)

As a medium-sized primary school in FOREST HILLS, New York, ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) hosts 573 students from grades pre-K through 5, run under NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #28. That puts it 29% larger than the typical public school in New York, which averages around 443 students.

NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #28 comprises 50 schools with combined enrollment of 36,340 students; ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) is among them.

For racial and ethnic makeup, ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) lists that the most-represented group is Asian (40%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. Other groups include 27% White, 18% Hispanic, 9% multiracial, 3% Black. That is meaningfully more Asian than the county at large, where the share is closer to 26%.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 32 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 17.9:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 12.8:1, putting ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) higher than the state norm the norm. About 24% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Queens County (around 77%), the school's rate is noticeably below typical.

After controlling for student poverty, ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 66.3%; this one delivers 91.4%, a residual of +25.2 points.

In the area at large, Queens County reports that the typical household earns roughly $86,136 per year, roughly 36% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) is one of 392 public schools in Queens County (combined enrollment of about 268,205 students).

Nearest neighbor: FOREST HILLS HIGH SCHOOL, around 0.3 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), ACADEMY FOR EXCELLENCE THROUGH THE ARTS (THE) ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 68.6%.

The campus sits in a downtown setting.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count expanded 180%: 205 students in 2018 compared to 573 in 2025. The White share of enrollment edged down from 36% to 27% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio loosened from 14.6:1 in 2018 to 17.9:1 today.

On this page, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.