98-12 Alstyne Avenue
Flushing, NY 11368

Both of my children attended PS13 from kindergarten. For the first few years, we were pleased with the instruction and the teachers’ attentiveness. However, after 3rd grade, we noticed a steep decline in the quality of teaching and teacher engagement.Teachers seemed increasingly unmotivated and disconnected from their students. Communication was poor—you’d be lucky to receive a timely response to emails or messages. When concerns were raised, many teachers became defensive instead of working with parents to support student success.The school appears to place far more emphasis on the arts than on core academics. At the time my children were enrolled, there were no science or STEM classes until 5th grade. In today’s digital age, this delay puts students at a clear disadvantage compared to their peers elsewhere.To be fair, the principal was actively involved and did make efforts to work with parents. Unfortunately, the overall teaching environment and culture in the upper grades overshadowed that leadership. By the time my oldest reached 4th grade, we knew we had to move both of our children to another school.At their new school, they are thriving—even with a more rigorous curriculum and full schedule. We were not surprised to find more than a dozen other former PS13 students there as well; many parents clearly shared our concerns and chose to transfer out before graduation.While PS13 had promise in the early grades, the lack of consistent quality instruction, STEM opportunities, and supportive teacher-parent relationships after 3rd grade ultimately drove us to make a change for the better.

Poor quality starts at the top. Bad administration.