Gotham Professional Arts Academy

Gotham Professional Arts Academy is a small Brooklyn high school, known for its distinctive arts-themed, college-preparatory curriculum. Serving approximately 223 students, it emphasizes community activism and helps students find their voice through an integrated arts approach centered on visual arts, art criticism, and theatre. As a New York Performance Standards Consortium member, the school utilizes project-based learning and competency-based grading, requiring students to complete and defend five rigorous Performance-Based Assessment Tasks (PBATs) in lieu of most Regents exams to earn a Regents diploma. These PBATs, involving extensive thesis-like papers and oral defenses, are often considered more challenging than traditional Regents exams. The curriculum includes Advanced Placement and on-site college courses, alongside a social justice focus. Students with IEPs receive personalized support through ICT classrooms. Parents and students generally praise the caring teachers and welcoming community, though some desire more consistent college prep support in senior year. The school partners with arts institutions and is a United Community Schools site, offering various extracurriculars. Its four-year graduation rate is 89% (slightly below the citywide median), and college enrollment is 56.8% (below the citywide median). The English Regents pass rate of 55.1% is an area for improvement. The school occupies one floor of the PS 40 building, featuring science labs, a dance studio, a media lab, a library, and a black box theater.