PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS

As a middle-of-the-pack elementary-level community in NEW YORK, New York, PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS hosts 575 students from grades pre-K through 8, overseen by NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT # 2. Enrollment runs roughly 30% bigger than the state mean of about 443.

Within NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT # 2, which oversees 119 schools and 54,599 students, PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS is one campus in the system.

On the student-mix side, PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS logs that 51% of students identify as Asian, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups; the rest is composed of 21% Hispanic, 14% Black, 9% White, 4% multiracial. That is considerably more Asian than the county at large, where the share is closer to 12%.

On the income-and-resources front, On paper, PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS has 49 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 11.8:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 12.8:1 average. Around 75% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS 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 47.4%; this one delivers 74.9%, a residual of +27.6 points.

Around the school, census data for New York County shows median household earnings sit near $103,931, roughly 64% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 13%. PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS is one of 358 public schools in New York County (combined enrollment of about 152,104 students).

Nearest neighbor: PS 1 ALFRED E SMITH, around 0.1 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts PS 126 JACOB AUGUST RIIS at 2nd of 9; the average score across the group is 57.3%.

The school occupies a metropolitan site.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count shrank 27%: 783 students in 2018 compared to 575 in 2025. Asian enrollment moved from 62% to 51% across the same window. Class-load math has tightened: from 13.7:1 in 2018 to 11.8:1 in 2025.

On the community side, recent activity here tends to focus on sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.