GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

The number of schools the city is considering for closure — already a record-high 47 — will likely increase after today’s public release of progress report scores.

GothamSchools has identified a total of 9 schools that could be added to the city’s watch-list for possible closure based on today’s scores. The city flags schools if they receive three consecutive C grades or a single D or F.

Though these schools meet the city’s criteria for closure based on test scores, they have not been officially added to the list of schools the city might shutter. City officials said they will announce their plans for these schools at the end of this month or early next month. That’s the same time the city will announce its plans for the high schools already identified for the watch list.

Not all of the schools that received low grades today will end up flagged for possible closure. City officials have said they will not consider schools that post graduation rates higher than the citywide average. The city also spares schools like Cypress Hills Collegiate Preparatory School that are receiving progress reports for the first time.

City officials also strike from the list schools which receive the highest rating on the city’s qualitative review, despite their low report card grades. So a school like Banana Kelly High School, which got a D today but which the city’s reviewers rated “well developed” on last year’s review, will likely be dropped from consideration.

A total of 10 schools met the city’s criteria based on their report card scores alone, but would be struck either because of their quality review rating or their graduation rates. One school that received a D this year, Frederick Douglass Academy, posted an 85 percent four-year graduation rate.

The schools already on the city’s watch-list posted a wide range of scores. Four of the 47 schools received B grades and nine received C’s.

And the “transformation” schools that were spared from closure because of recent gains also received a range of grades, some of which were drops from the year before. One of them, the Brooklyn School for Global Studies, was among the five lowest-scoring schools in the city and received an F. Several, including Bread and Roses High School and William E. Grady Career and Technical Education High School, dropped from a C to a D.

Here are all of the schools that meet the city’s criteria for intervention and possible closure. They are listed from highest progress report scores to lowest. The list excludes schools that were already on the city’s watch-list and schools that the city is trying to use improve using the “transformation” model.

New Explorers High School – D
Leadership Institute – D
Bronx High School for Law and Community Service – D
Henry Street School for International Studies – D
Urban Assembly Academy for History and Citizenship for Young Men – F
Herbert H. Lehman High School – F
Performance Conservatory High School – F
FDNY High School for Fire and Life Safety – over three years, F then two Cs

UPDATE: This post originally mistakenly listed DreamYard Preparatory School; because it is the first year the school received a report card, it should not have been included. We regret the error.