PS 32 SAMUEL MILLS SPROLE vs RIVERDALE AVENUE COMMUNITY SCHOOL

PS 32 Samuel Mills Sprole and Riverdale Avenue Community School sit 4.3 miles apart in Brooklyn and earn nearly identical overall ratings — 8.5 versus 8.4 out of 10 — but that 0.1-point gap conceals meaningful differences underneath. In New York state rankings, PS 32 lands at #275 of 4,742 schools while Riverdale Avenue Community School ranks #348 of 4,742, a 73-position gap that puts PS 32 in roughly the top 6% of the state compared to Riverdale's top 7%.

The academic picture reverses that ordering. Riverdale Avenue Community School scores 8.8 on academics versus PS 32's 8.6 — a two-tenths advantage that reflects stronger raw proficiency results. Growth is where Riverdale pulls furthest ahead: its 10.0 growth score edges PS 32's already-strong 9.6, meaning Riverdale is pushing students forward at a rate the state considers nearly perfect. Parents weighing current test performance against year-over-year progress gains will find Riverdale slightly ahead on both academic dimensions despite the overall rating flip.

The demographic and resource pictures diverge sharply. PS 32 enrolls 448 students against Riverdale's 314, and its 39% free and reduced-price lunch rate contrasts with Riverdale's 96% — a gap that signals fundamentally different community economic profiles. PS 32's student-teacher ratio of 8.3:1 is notably lower than Riverdale's 12.6:1, which translates to roughly 4 additional students per teacher at Riverdale and less individual instructional time on average.

Both schools serve the same grade band — pre-K through 5th grade — so families with children across early-elementary years can make a direct apples-to-apples comparison on programming continuity. The identical grade span means no structural advantage on entry or exit points; the distinction comes down entirely to class size, economic mix, and the academic and growth margins described above.