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Our Insights

What’s Special

Daily arts instruction for all students

The Downside

Low attendance rates remain a struggle for the school

Lower Manhattan Arts Academy (LoMA) opened in 2005 with the mission of promoting academics through daily immersion in the arts. Located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the school has developed strong partnerships with local arts and social service organizations to help provide students with lots of arts enrichment and academic support. Every student takes part in several performances and gallery exhibits prior to graduation. These have taken place at the Whitney, Metropolitan Opera House, on Broadway stages and in professional recording studios. LoMA is an unscreened school and does not require auditions or portfolios for admission.

Academics & Instruction: Students take a regular academic program that includes four years of English, history, science and math. In recent years, the school has added an intensive reading and math support program for grades 9-11, including designated reading periods each day. Daily tutoring is available in all major subject areas. 

The school's focus on arts increases in each grade. Ninth graders rotate through 10 weeks each of drama, music, dance and visual arts. Students then choose an arts major to pursue in grades 10 through 12. The Henry Street Settlement offers an after school arts program. Students perform in a play in the fall and a musical in the spring. Seniors have a double art period every day. 

The school has a rich selection of extracurricular and after school activities that are focused on, but not limited to the arts. Their competitive dance team ‘Chimera Concepts’, has competed in city- and state-wide competitions. Other clubs include photography club, step and cheer teams, games club, Girls Who Code, crafts, student council, and a glow up club, which works to beautify the school with student artwork.

One downside here is attendance: a large number of students miss a month or more of school a year. Adding more clubs and activities is intended to increase the attendance rate, according to the administration. An attendance team also keeps close tabs on chronically absent students.  

Culture & Environment: LoMA has four counselors, a very high number for a small school. In 2023, the school introduced a new arts-focused advisory program aimed at affirming students' personal and cultural identities and helping develop professional networks. Students attend an advisory period at least once a week. The school puts on a multicultural performance each year that all students across the disciplines may participate in. 

Special Education & English as a New Language: Almost one-third of the students have special needs. Nearly half the classes are team-taught ICT (Integrated Co-Teaching) classes, with two teachers. The school also offers Engligh as a Second Language support with a number of bilingual teachers.

Building & Facilities: LoMA is one of five small high schools housed in the Seward Park Campus building. All the schools share use of the auditorium, gymnasium, cardio and weight room, cafeteria, swimming pool and library. There are no metal detectors. 

College & Career: LoMA offers college and career preparation throughout all four years of high school, including college visits and professional networking with local companies and institutions, with a special emphasis on careers in the arts. (Paul Rochford, web reports and interview, May 2024)

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School Stats

Citywide Average Key
This school is Better Near Worse than the citywide average

Academics

School
Citywide
How many students graduate in 4 years?
 
85%
How many students with disabilities graduate in 4 years?
 
72%
Average daily attendance
 
79%
How many students miss 18 or more days of school?
 
62%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school offers enough activities and services for their children's needs?
 
86%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school works to achieve the goals of their students' IEPs?
 
93%
From the 2022-23 School Quality Guide and 2022-23 NYC School Survey

Students

316
Number of students
Citywide Average is 615

Race/Ethnicity


School
Citywide
Low-income students
 
82%
Students with disabilities
 
28%
Multilingual learners
 
5%
From the 2022-23 Demographic Snapshot

Safety & Vibe

School
Citywide
How many students were suspended?
 
1%
How many students say they feel safe in the hallways, bathrooms and locker rooms?
 
88%
How many students think bullying happens most or all of the time at this school?
 
45%
How many students say that some are bullied at their school because of their gender or sexual orientation?
 
28%
How many teachers say they would recommend this school to other families?
 
50%
From the 2022-23 NYC School Survey and 2019-20 NY State Report Card

Faculty & Staff

School
Citywide
How many teachers say the principal is an effective manager?
 
86%
0.9
Years of principal experience at this school
Citywide Average is 7
113
Number of students for each guidance counselor or social worker
Citywide Average is 191
How many teachers have 3 or more years of experience teaching?
 
73%
Are teachers effective?
From the 2022-23 NYC School Survey, 2022-23 School Quality Guide, 2021-22 Report on School-Based Staff Demographics, 2023 Guidance Counselor Report, and this school's most recent Quality Review Report

Advanced Courses

Which students have access to advanced courses at this school? Learn more

Calculus

Not offered in 2021-21

Computer Science

Not offered in 2021-21

Physics

Not offered in 2021-21

Advanced Foreign Language

Not offered in 2021-21

AP/IB Arts, English, History or Social Science

 
47%

AP/IB Math or Science

 
34%

Music

 
46%
From unpublished, anonymized data from the 2021-22 school year provided by the New York State Education Department, brought to you by

College Readiness

School
Citywide
How many students graduate with test scores high enough to enroll at CUNY without remedial help?
 
58%
How many students take a college-level course or earn a professional certificate?
 
85%
How many students who have graduated from this high school stay in college for at least 3 semesters?
 
28%
From the 2020-21 and 2022-23 School Quality Guide

How many graduates who are eligible received Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funding to attend a NYS college?
 
60%
This shows how well this school supports low-income students to get funding for college.
How many of those TAP recipients made it through college? Learn more
From unpublished, anonymized student-level data for the class of 2016-17 provided by the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) in coordination with the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), brought to you by
How many students filled out a FAFSA form by the end of their senior year?
 
50%
From the 2022-23 FAFSA data released by Federal Student Aid, brought to you by Visit Understanding FAFSA for help with the FAFSA and financial aid.
For more information about our data sources, see About Our Data · More DOE statistics for this school

Programs & Admissions

From the 2024 High School Directory

Lower Manhattan Arts Academy (M05R)

Admissions Method: Ed. Opt.

Program Description:

All freshmen complete a one year rotation of the four arts before choosing a major that they focus on for their final three years. As a major of visual arts, dance, drama or music they study the technique and history of their art in social context before participating in a senior internship. Every student takes part in several performances/gallery exhibits prior to graduation. These have taken place at the Whitney, Metropolitan Opera House, Broadway stages and professional recording studios.

Offerings

From the 2024 High School Directory

Language Courses

Spanish

Advanced Courses

Algebra II (Advanced Math), AP English Literature and Composition, AP Environmental Science, AP Statistics, Chemistry (Advanced Science), Social Studies (Advanced Placement), World Languages (Advanced World Languages)

Boys PSAL teams

Badminton, Baseball, Basketball, Bowling, Handball, Volleyball, Wrestling

Girls PSAL teams

Badminton, Basketball, Bowling, Softball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Tennis, Volleyball, Wrestling

Read about admissions, academics, and more at this school on NYCDOE’s MySchools

NYC Department of Education: MySchools

Contact & Location

Location

350 Grand Street
Manhattan NY 10002

Trains: B Line, D Line to Grand St; F Line, J Line, M Line, Z Line to Delancey St

Buses: B39, M1, M103, M14A-SBS, M14D-SBS, M15, M15-SBS, M21, M22, M9


Contact

Principal: Joel Lowy

Parent Coordinator: Taisha Perez

Phone: 212-505-0143

Website

Other Details

Shared campus? Yes

This school shares the Seward Park Educational Campus with four other schools

Uniforms required? No
Metal detectors? No

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