Overview
KIPP NYC Washington Heights Academy Charter School is a public charter school in the Washington Heights area of Manhattan, New York City. It serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade; NYC Public Schools lists the school’s grades as 0K, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, and 08 [3]. The school is identified in NYC Public Schools records as school number M068, with District Borough Number 84M068, in Geographic District 6 [3].
The school is authorized by the State University of New York (SUNY). NYSED states that institutional information for the school is maintained by the SUNY Charter Schools Institute [2]. New York State records give the school’s legal name as KIPP NYC Washington Heights Academy Charter School, with a BEDS code of 310600861013 and institution ID 800000071076 [1].
As a charter school, KIPP NYC Washington Heights Academy is a publicly funded school of choice rather than a zoned neighborhood school. It is accountable to its authorizer and to New York State reporting requirements, and its enrollment is handled through the charter school application process rather than through assignment to a local attendance zone [2][3].
Location and School Identity
The address listed by NYC Public Schools for the school is 21 Jumel Place, Manhattan, NY 10032 [3]. The same listing indicates that the school shares a building with other schools and identifies two building records associated with the school: M090 at 21 Jumel Place and M115 at 586 West 177 Street [3].
Readers researching this school should note that its name combines a network affiliation (KIPP NYC), a neighborhood name (Washington Heights), and a school type (charter school). It should not be confused with other KIPP NYC schools elsewhere in the city, nor with district public schools in the same neighborhood. The official name in state records, the BEDS code, and the NYC school number M068 are the most reliable identifiers for distinguishing it [1][3].
Because the school is a charter school, its appearance in Geographic District 6 reflects a geographic and administrative classification rather than an attendance boundary. A campus location by itself does not establish eligibility to enroll, and this profile does not state one.
Contact information differs slightly between official listings. NYC Public Schools lists the school phone number as 212-991-2630 and a fax number of 347-521-7879 [3], while the NYSED Data Site profile lists (212) 991-2620 [1]. The school’s official website is listed as https://www.kippwashingtonheights.org [1].
Leadership listings also differ between sources. NYC Public Schools lists Eric Cato and Yanet Lewis as principals [3], while the NYSED Data Site profile lists Chrystal Griffin as the charter school leader [1]. These listings may reflect different reporting periods, and school leadership can change; readers should confirm current leadership with the school.
Grades and Academic Programs
The confirmed grade span is kindergarten through grade 8, listed as 0K through 08 [3]. That span covers elementary and middle-level grades; state reporting for a school of this type centers on elementary and middle-level assessments rather than high school graduation measures.
The retrieved sources do not describe specific curricula, instructional models, or enrichment programs offered at this campus, so no program list is given here. In New York State, the programs a charter school offers are set out in its charter and can change over time; the school’s own website and its charter documents are the appropriate places to confirm current offerings [2].
The NYSED Data Site profile for this school includes sections on enrollment, school climate, attendance, suspension, and chronic absenteeism, along with general state material on Social Emotional Learning resources and mental health education [1]. The retrieved excerpt of that page did not include the underlying values for those indicators, so no figures are reported here.
Enrollment and School Data
The NYSED Data Site profile for the school lists a total of 790 students [1]. The reporting year for that figure is not stated in the retrieved excerpt, and the figure should therefore be treated as the enrollment reported on the NYSED profile as of the retrieval date rather than as a current-year count. Enrollment at charter schools can change from year to year as seats and applications change.
No other school-level figures, such as student-teacher ratio, assessment results, attendance rates, or suspension rates, were available in the retrieved evidence for this profile. Missing values should not be read as zero and should not be interpreted as evidence about school quality.
How to read the available data
NYC Public Schools publishes two school-level reporting tools linked from the school’s page. The School Quality Snapshot is described as a summary for families that captures the school’s learning environment and student performance, and the K-8 School Performance Dashboard is described as showing multiple years of data and key comparisons for the school [3]. Both are aggregate reporting tools; they describe a school population rather than an individual student, and they should be read alongside the reporting period each covers.
Admissions and Enrollment
KIPP NYC Washington Heights Academy Charter School is a charter school, not a zoned neighborhood school. Its NYC Public Schools page directs families to information on how to enroll in a charter school [3].
In New York State, charter schools are tuition-free public schools of choice. When more students apply than there are seats available, admission is determined by lottery, and charter schools generally may not screen applicants on selective academic criteria. Application timing, forms, and any preference rules are set by the school and its authorizer, so families should confirm current deadlines and requirements directly with the school or through the official NYC charter school enrollment process [3].
Nothing in the retrieved sources indicates that living in a particular area guarantees a seat at this school, and this profile makes no such claim.
Student Services and Family Information
- Accessibility: NYC Public Schools lists the school as fully accessible and rates building M090 at 21 Jumel Place 10 out of 10 on its building accessibility profile, indicating that all educational primary function areas within the building are accessible [3].
- Meals: The NYC Public Schools listing includes free student meals, with breakfast and lunch menus published [3].
- Mental health and wellness: The NYC Public Schools listing advises families to ask their parent coordinator, school social worker, or school counselor for information about the school’s mental health program [3].
- Contact: The NYC Public Schools listing provides an email address, wh-principal@kippnyc.org, associated with the listed principal contacts [3].
Transportation, language-support services, and after-school programming are not described in the retrieved sources and are therefore not listed here. Families should confirm these services directly with the school.
History and Community Context
The NYSED charter school page for the school links to annual reports and financial statements for 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, and 2022-2023, and to a 2017 Renewal Site Visit Report [2]. Those documents indicate that the school was operating and had reached a charter renewal review by 2017. The retrieved sources do not state a founding date, so none is given here, and no claims are made about the school’s reputation or long-term outcomes.
The school’s network affiliation is reflected in its legal name in state records, which includes KIPP NYC [1]. The retrieved sources do not describe the school’s relationship to its surrounding neighborhood beyond its Manhattan location and its listing in Geographic District 6 [3].
How to Verify Current Information
Enrollment figures, staffing, programs, services, and admissions details can change. Readers should confirm current information with official sources:
- The school’s official website: https://www.kippwashingtonheights.org [1]
- NYC Public Schools school page for school number M068: https://www.schools.nyc.gov/schools/M068 [3]
- NYSED Data Site profile for institution ID 800000071076: https://data.nysed.gov/profile.php?instid=800000071076 [1]
- NYSED charter school page, which links to documents maintained by the SUNY Charter Schools Institute: https://www.nysed.gov/charter-schools/kipp-nyc-washington-heights-academy-charter-school [2]
NYSED notes that institutional data updates for charter schools are handled through the SEDREF system, and that corrections can be requested by emailing datasupport@nysed.gov and copying charterschools@nysed.gov, including the school’s BEDS code [2].