M.S. 839

713 CATON AVENUE, BROOKLYN, NY 11218 · Brooklyn · Junior High-Intermediate-Middle

DBN: 15K839

Junior High-Intermediate-Middle

Unzoned

SchoolDigger: 401 (of 1500)

Niche: B+ · 317 (of 1507)

Academic quality

ELA = English Language Arts (reading and writing). Math and Science are self-explanatory.
NY State tests ELA and Math every year in grades 3-8, and Science once, in grade 8 -- a school's numbers below only reflect whichever of those grades it actually serves (no social studies/history state test exists at this level).
"Avg. rating" is DOE's average student score on a 1.0-4.5 scale (higher is better) -- shown here as "value / 4.5" alongside the citywide average for the same metric as a benchmark for what's typical.

Attendance: 93.8%

84.5% attend 90%+ of days

Subject

Student group

Overall proficiency

ELA % proficient

65.8%(citywide avg: 63.4%)

ELA avg. rating

3.25 / 4.5(citywide avg: 3.23 / 4.5)

Math % proficient

42.9%(citywide avg: 59.3%)

Math avg. rating

2.89 / 4.5(citywide avg: 3.15 / 4.5)

By grade

Grade 6 ELA

61.8%

Grade 6 Math

37.6%

Grade 7 ELA

66.3%

Grade 7 Math

56.3%

Grade 8 ELA

70.7%

Grade 8 Math

37.4%

By student group

English Language Learners -- ELA

23.3%(citywide avg: 29.8%)

English Language Learners -- Math

6.5%(citywide avg: 29.4%)

Students with disabilities -- ELA

42.5%

Students with disabilities -- Math

20.3%

Asian students -- ELA

62.9%(citywide avg: 61%)

Asian students -- Math

56.8%(citywide avg: 67.1%)

Black students -- ELA

57.9%(citywide avg: 55.4%)

Small sample (19 students) -- treat as directional.

Black students -- Math

15.8%(citywide avg: 33%)

Small sample (19 students) -- treat as directional.

Hispanic/Latino students -- ELA

49.5%(citywide avg: 50.6%)

Hispanic/Latino students -- Math

17.6%(citywide avg: 42.7%)

White students -- ELA

79.5%(citywide avg: 75.3%)

White students -- Math

62.3%(citywide avg: 71.9%)

Multiracial students -- ELA

75%(citywide avg: 71.9%)

Small sample (16 students) -- treat as directional.

Multiracial students -- Math

43.8%(citywide avg: 59.1%)

Small sample (16 students) -- treat as directional.

"% proficient" is the share of students scoring Level 3 or 4 on the state test. Citywide comparisons are the average across schools of the same type. Grades and groups with very few tested students are flagged since a handful of kids can swing the percentage a lot; groups too small to report are omitted by DOE for student privacy -- that's also why Science, tested only once, shows up far less often than ELA/Math.Source: NYC Open Data: School Quality Reports Data (2024-25 school year (latest published; checked Oct 16, 2026))

See full grade-by-grade test results (ELA, Math, Science) →

Demographics

317 students enrolled

Economic Need Index: 48.92%

Race & ethnicity

Asian and Pacific Islander

12.93%

Black

5.05%

Hispanic or Latino

34.7%

White

40.69%

Multiracial

5.05%

Native American

0.63%

Missing race/ethnicity data

0.95%

Other groups

Students with disabilities

29.34%

English Language Learners

7.26%

Living in poverty

47.32%

Female

49.53%

Male

50.16%

Neither female nor male

0.32%

Economic Need Index is DOE's estimate of the share of students facing economic hardship, based on eligibility for public assistance, temporary housing status, and household income relative to the poverty line. Some very high values are reported by DOE only as "Above 95%" for student privacy and are shown here as 95%.Source: NYC DOE: Demographic Snapshot (2025-26 school year (latest published; checked Oct 16, 2026))

Middle School admissions priority breakdown

Admissions cycle

For seats starting the 2026-27 school year. NYC DOE reports these seat/applicant figures under the school year they're for, not the cycle that filled them.

Open

84 seats

3 applicants per seat

Priority groups, in the order NYC DOE offers seats. Tap a group for NYC DOE's exact wording.

1. Priority to applicants whose sibling(s) will be enrolled in this school next year

~100% admitted

There were fewer than 10 applicants eligible for free or reduced price lunch in this group and all received offers last year. There were fewer than 10 additional applicants in this group and all received offers last year.This group's offers alone accounted for ~21% of the program's seats -- not the same as this group's own admit rate above, since offers can exceed seats (not everyone who gets one enrolls).

2. Then to students and residents of District 15

~53% admitted

There were about 50 applicants eligible for free or reduced price lunch in this group and almost all received offers last year. There were about 110 additional applicants in this group and about 40 received offers last year.This group's offers alone accounted for ~101% of the program's seats -- not the same as this group's own admit rate above, since offers can exceed seats (not everyone who gets one enrolls).

3. Then to New York City residents

~0% admitted

There were about 40 applicants eligible for free or reduced price lunch in this group and none received offers last year. There were about 20 additional applicants in this group and none received offers last year.This group's offers alone accounted for ~0% of the program's seats -- not the same as this group's own admit rate above, since offers can exceed seats (not everyone who gets one enrolls).

Estimates derived from NYC DOE's own wording, which rounds and fuzzes small numbers for privacy. Each group's applicant count is independent of the others -- schools are usually oversubscribed, so applicant counts across groups often add up to more than the total seats. That's expected, not an error.Source: NYC DOE MySchools Admissions Data (Through the 2025-26 cycle for middle school, 2024-25 for kindergarten (2025-26 kindergarten results not yet published; checked Oct 16, 2026))

See your own chances here

Which priority group your child falls into decides the odds above. The iPhone app works that out from your address and answers, then builds your whole ranked MySchools list. How it works

Download on theApp Store

School survey

Family, student, and teacher responses on instruction, safety, school climate, and family engagement.

See detailed school survey results (Families, Students, Teachers) →

More District 15 schools

All District 15 schools →