Is Nelson Mandela High School a good school?

Nelson Mandela High School ranks in the bottom 1.3% of New York high schools.

How many students attend Nelson Mandela High School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 144 students attended Nelson Mandela High School.

What is the racial makeup of Nelson Mandela High School?

Students at Nelson Mandela High School are 72% African American, 12% Hispanic, 10% Two or more races, 3% American Indian, 2% Asian.

Nelson Mandela High School

Summary:

Nelson Mandela High School is a small public high school in Brooklyn, New York, serving 133 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the New York City Geographic District #16, which is ranked 676 out of 865 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Nelson Mandela High School has consistently ranked among the lowest-performing high schools in New York state, with a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger in the 2023-2024 school year. The school's performance is particularly concerning for certain student subgroups, such as female students, male students, African American students, special education students, and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. The school's four-year graduation rates have been consistently low, ranging from 17.1% to 84.3% over the past few years, and its dropout rates have been high, ranging from 4.9% to 11.4% in recent years. Additionally, the school has experienced extremely high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 34.1% to 89.6% in the past few years.

The challenges faced by Nelson Mandela High School are not unique within the district, as nearby schools such as Brooklyn High School for Law and Technology, Brooklyn Academy of Global Finance, and Research and Service High School also perform poorly on academic metrics. Despite a significant increase in per-student spending, from $16,188 in the 2019-2020 school year to $32,555 in the 2022-2023 school year, the school's academic outcomes have not improved. The school's relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 7.2 to 8.5 in recent years, suggests that the challenges may lie in other areas, such as curriculum, instruction, or school climate.

Detail:

Public 9-12

1700 Fulton St
Brooklyn, NY 11213

(718) 804-6805

District: New York City Geographic District #16

SchoolDigger Rank:
1226^th of 1,242 New York High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $32,555

Student/teacher ratio: 7.6

Number of students: 144

Racial breakdown:

African American:

72.2%

Hispanic:

11.8%

Two or more races:

10.4%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 92.4%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Nelson Mandela High School ranks worse than 98.7% of high schools in New York. It also ranks 4^th among 5 ranked high schools in the New York City Geographic District #16. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 3.76. (See more...)

The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at Nelson Mandela High School who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.

The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.

Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.

Student Body

Compare Details Nelson Mandela High School has the smallest high school student body size in the New York City Geographic District #16. Racial makeup is: African American (72.2%), Hispanic (11.8%), two or more races (10.4%). (See more...)

Compare Details 92.4% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Nelson Mandela High School is 7.6, which is the lowest among 5 high schools in the New York City Geographic District #16! (See more...)

Compare Nelson Mandela High School employs 18.8 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Nelson Mandela High School is $32,555, which is the highest among 5 high schools in the New York City Geographic District #16!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Nelson Mandela High School:

SchoolDigger ranks Nelson Mandela High School 1226^th of 1242 New York public high schools. (See Nelson Mandela High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Homeless students:

Female students:

Male students:

African American students:

New York City Geographic District #16:

SchoolDigger ranks New York City Geographic District #16 676^th of 865 New York school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Nelson Mandela High School

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Rank History for all students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2019	16.75	987^th	1207	18.2%
2022	3.35	1172^nd	1190	1.5%
2023	8.45	1136^th	1228	7.5%
2024	3.76	1226^th	1242	1.3%

See the entire list of New York High School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	32.88	730^th	1095	33.3%
2019	32.05	776^th	1132	31.4%
2022	13.48	986^th	1038	5.0%
2023	17.38	1024^th	1130	9.4%
2024	18.21	1040^th	1144	9.1%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	21.75	926^th	1154	19.8%
2019	18.59	969^th	1179	17.8%
2023	7.48	1102^nd	1155	4.6%
2024	2.30	1165^th	1170	0.4%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Homeless students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	41.44	283^rd	498	43.2%
2019	29.07	378^th	493	23.3%
2023	40.42	315^th	531	40.7%
2024	18.95	523^rd	564	7.3%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for Homeless Students!

Rank History for Female students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	25.29	892^nd	1176	24.1%
2019	21.65	937^th	1193	21.5%
2022	2.31	1145^th	1155	0.9%
2023	3.00	1180^th	1197	1.4%
2024	4.07	1205^th	1219	1.1%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	23.63	895^th	1176	23.9%
2019	14.55	1005^th	1190	15.5%
2022	4.74	1107^th	1154	4.1%
2023	17.89	954^th	1191	19.9%
2024	7.61	1148^th	1211	5.2%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Nelson Mandela High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	NY State Percentile
2018	35.94	428^th	679	37.0%
2019	29.14	510^th	686	25.7%
2023	21.53	560^th	671	16.5%
2024	9.02	671^st	690	2.8%

See the entire list of Best New York High Schools for African American Students!

Data source: test scores: NY State Education Department, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: NY State Education Department

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Enrollment information for Nelson Mandela High School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Two or More Races	Total
2015	3	108	0	13	1	0	125
2016	4	188	0	21	2	1	216
2017	3	227	2	31	3	1	267
2018	3	227	3	30	4	5	272
2019	2	212	3	26	7	3	253
2020	2	190	2	32	7	2	235
2021	1	152	0	24	5	1	183
2022	0	123	1	25	4	1	154
2023	1	92	3	22	3	12	133
2024	1	104	3	17	4	15	144

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Nelson Mandela High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2015	125	6.0	20.8	76.8
2016	216	15.0	14.4	70.4
2017	267	17.0	15.6	71.2
2018	272	20.0	13.5	78.7
2019	253	16.0	15.8	79.1
2020	235	16.0	14.6	79.6
2021	183	22.5	8.1	86.9
2022	154	17.9	8.5	88.3
2023	133	18.4	7.2	88
2024	144	18.8	7.6	92.4

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Nelson Mandela High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2015	125	6.0	20.8	76.8
2016	216	15.0	14.4	70.4
2017	267	17.0	15.6	71.2
2018	272	20.0	13.5	78.7
2019	253	16.0	15.8	79.1
2020	235	16.0	14.6	79.6
2021	183	22.5	8.1	86.9
2022	154	17.9	8.5	88.3
2023	133	18.4	7.2	88
2024	144	18.8	7.6	92.4

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

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