PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER

Located at 170 GATES AVE, in BROOKLYN, New York, PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER is a close-knit elementary school that teaches 253 students (grades pre-K through 5), one of the schools within NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #13. Compared to the state average of about 443 students per school, that is 43% smaller than typical.

NEW YORK CITY GEOGRAPHIC DISTRICT #13 comprises 42 schools with combined enrollment of 19,151 students; PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER is among them.

Looking at the student body, PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER records that the largest single group is White at 42%, but no single group is in the majority. The remainder looks like 32% Black, 16% Hispanic, 8% multiracial. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

On the resource side, Staff filings list 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 14.4:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 12.8:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. About 42% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. Set against Kings County (around 79%), the school's rate is meaningfully below typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 59.7%, the actual is 58.6%, a residual of -1.1 points.

In the surrounding community, ACS estimates for Kings County put median household income runs about $80,263, 42% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 15%. In all, Kings County runs 583 public schools (combined enrollment of about 291,697 students), of which PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER is one.

The closest other public school is URBAN ASSEMBLY UNISON SCHOOL (THE), roughly 0.0 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER ranks 5th on composite proficiency, above the local average of 56.7%.

PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER operates from a downtown location.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER has edged up 19%, going from 213 students in 2018 to 253 in 2025. Black enrollment moved from 65% to 32% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio grew from 11.4:1 in 2018 to 14.4:1 today.

On this page, the feed for PS 56 LEWIS H LATIMER typically covers science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.