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2026 Brooklyn Prospect Charter Schools Renewal Recommendation Report

Districts: Brooklyn CSD 13, Brooklyn CSD 15

Key Information

Education Corporation Background

Brooklyn Prospect Charter School (“Brooklyn Prospect Schools”) opened its doors in 2009 serving 6th grade students in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn Community School District (“CSD”) 15. Since then, the education corporation has expanded to operate four charter schools in CSDs 13 and 15
comprising Kindergarten – 12th grade including:
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 13 (“Brooklyn Prospect 13”);
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 13.2 (“Brooklyn Prospect 13.2”);
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 15 (“Brooklyn Prospect 15”); and,
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 15.2 (“Brooklyn Prospect 15.2”).

Brooklyn Prospect Schools contracts with the charter management organization, Prospect Schools, Inc. (“Prospect Schools” or the “network”), a New York not-for-profit corporation, which provides support for academics, recruitment, human resources, operations, finance, development, and professional
development. Brooklyn Prospect 15 opened its middle school program in 2023-24, referred to as Sunset Yards Middle School, which serves a highly diverse student population. The education corporation continues to demonstrate strong academic outcomes as well as organizational and financial stability.

Executive Summary

Brooklyn Prospect Schools demonstrates strong student achievement across its schools. With the support of the network, the schools adapted to growth and organizational changes, including the transition of the organization’s founder, and consistently posted academic results that outperformed the districts of location, maintaining a high-quality academic program rooted in the rigor of the International Baccalaureate (“IB”) program. To better meet the diverse needs of its student body, Brooklyn Prospect Schools adopted several new curricula during the charter term and provided teachers with support in effectively implementing the new resources. During the charter term, Brooklyn Prospect Schools worked to increase the enrollment and improve the performance of its highest-need students, particularly English language learners (“ELLs”) and economically disadvantaged students.

Brooklyn Prospect Schools is a college preparatory community wherein students at all levels engage in challenging academic work that fosters critical thinking and problem-solving skills as well as personal development. This work culminates in high school, when students can earn a globally recognized IB diploma. During the charter term, Brooklyn Prospect Schools developed its academic program to ensure more students have the opportunity to take IB classes and earn an IB diploma.

To prepare its diverse student body to succeed as global citizens with a lifelong passion for learning, Brooklyn Prospect Schools are committed to excellent teaching. With support from the network, the education corporation provides teachers with robust and ongoing professional development that aligns with the mission and key design elements. Teachers collaborate to set goals tied to student performance and aligned to the education corporation’s organizational key performance indicators. Ongoing coaching provides teachers with the support necessary to meet the differentiated needs of a diverse student body.

Findings and Information

Is the education corporation an academic success?
Brooklyn Prospect Schools is an academic success. The elementary and middle programs consistently outperform their districts of location, and the high school program posts strong graduation and college matriculation rates. Through the implementation of an academic program aligned with state, Regents, and IB standards, the schools provide a rigorous education differentiated for individual student needs. Brooklyn Prospect Schools regularly administers assessments to collect data that instructional staff members use to provide the targeted support necessary for students to be academically successful.

Brooklyn Prospect Schools has produced strong results on annual New York State testing and has consistently demonstrated high comparative achievement and growth. The high school program developed an “IB for all” philosophy, offering additional IB courses to students and providing a free, open-enrollment IB program in New York City. The schools demonstrate success in the following ways:

• In ELA, the schools posted aggregate performance that exceeded the targets for all comparative and growth measures from 2021-22 through 2024-25. Notably in 2024-25, 83% of tested students enrolled in at least their second year across the education corporation scored at or above proficiency exceeding the absolute target by
eight percentage points.
• The schools demonstrated a similarly strong record of achievement and growth in mathematics over the term. Notably from 2022-23 through 2024-25, the schools’ aggregate performance exceeded all the targets for the five required measures under the mathematics goal.
• Brooklyn Prospect 15.2 met its graduation goal over the charter term. The school posted four year graduation rates that exceed the absolute target of 75% each year and surpassed the district rate by at least 15 percentage points each year

Is the education corporation an effective, viable organization?
Brooklyn Prospect Schools is an effective and viable organization. The education corporation demonstrates organizational capacity through its clear administrative staffing structure for both operations and academics. The network provides strong support in the areas of curriculum development, instructional leadership, and staff member and student recruitment. Brooklyn Prospect Schools, with support from the network, allocate sufficient resources to the schools to achieve goals. Leaders began strategic planning with an external consultant in May 2025 in anticipation of the high school program’s move and potential increase in enrollment. The board, network, and school leadership are proactive in their planning and operate with “IB for all” as the foundational objective.

Is the education corporation fiscally sound?
Brooklyn Prospect Schools is fiscally adequate based on the Institute’s review of the renewal documentation. The network finance team meets with the board monthly to present an enrollment report and discuss financial results. The education corporation maintained adequate enrollment throughout the schools’ current charter term.

The 2024-25 annual financial audit did not present any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses related to financial reporting. Brooklyn Prospect Schools maintains a separate bank account with the established amounts for dissolution as required by the charter agreement.

Brooklyn Prospect Schools demonstrated an adequate financial performance during the current charter term with net assets of $5.1 million and 0.4 months of cash on hand as of the 2024-25 annual financial audit. Although the education corporation experienced a meaningful drop in months of cash on hand over the charter term, Brooklyn Prospect Schools has certificates of deposit which can be converted. Due to the ASC842 accounting adoption, entities need to report all non-cash depreciation and amortization expenses within the statement of activities. As such, a portion of the operating deficits and decrease in net assets presented in the fiscal dashboard can be attributed to non-cash depreciation and amortization expenses recognized by Brooklyn Prospect Schools. Additionally, the education corporation attributes a portion of its operating deficits to a decrease in grant funding received during the 2024-25 fiscal year.

If the SUNY Trustees renew each charter, are the education corporation’s plans for each charter reasonable, feasible, and achievable?
Brooklyn Prospect Schools’ plans for the future are reasonable, feasible, and achievable. The education corporation plans to continue implementing the strategies that led to its success over the charter term. Sufficient operational and academic capacity is in place to support the education corporation’s plans in the upcoming charter term, if approved.

During the upcoming charter term, as part of its strategic growth plan, Brooklyn Prospect Schools plans to relocate its high school to a larger facility that will allow the education corporation to expand its enrollment from 800 to 1,200 students by 2029. The new facility is co-located with St. Francis College, which will provide additional opportunities for high school students to access college level courses. Brooklyn Prospect Schools is also planning to expand the current Brooklyn Prospect 15 school to serve Kindergarten – 8th grade in the next charter term. The program will replicate Brooklyn Prospect Schools’ effective programs at the elementary and middle school levels.

The future budget in the renewal documentation projects the education corporation to return to surplus and includes reasonable revenue and expense projections that reflect achievable fiscal plans for the next charter term. Brooklyn Prospect Schools currently occupies five facilities and is in the construction process of a new campus that it anticipates will house the high school program for the 2026-27 school year. Brooklyn Prospect Schools intend to repurpose the current high school location to serve an elementary and middle school program under the Brooklyn Prospect 15 charter

Recommendation: Full-Term Renewal with Conditions

Renewal through 2030-31. The SUNY Charter Schools Institute (the “Institute”) recommends the SUNY Trustees’ Charter Schools Committee approve the four Applications for Charter Renewal:
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 13;
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 13.2;
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 15; and,
• Brooklyn Prospect Charter School – CSD 15.2.

If each school is renewed, Brooklyn Prospect Schools will be granted the authority to continue to operate each charter through 2030-31 with the authority to provide instruction to students in such configuration as set forth in each charter’s Application for Renewal and subject to a set of conditions listed below. The Institute makes this recommendation based on each charter meeting the criteria for renewal set forth in the Policies for the Renewal of Not-for-Profit Charter School Education Corporations and Charter Schools Authorized by the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York (“SUNY Renewal Policies”).

The Institute further recommends the SUNY Trustees renew for a full term of five years the provisional charter of Brooklyn Prospect Schools, the New York not-for-profit charter school education corporation.

Conditions

By July 1, 2026, the education corporation must provide a Corrective Action Plan, to be approved by the Institute, to come into compliance with teacher certification requirements under the Act inclusive of methods to assist uncertified teachers in obtaining certification, an identified system of monitoring certification status,
and administrative or monetary supports offered to teachers. The education corporation must demonstrate significant improvement regarding compliance with teacher certification requirements in accordance with the Act by the conclusion of the education corporation’s next proposed renewal term. For Brooklyn Prospect
Schools, this applies to all schools within the education corporation except Brooklyn Prospect 15 which is in compliance with the number of certified teachers.

Revision Request

As part of the renewal process, Brooklyn Prospect Schools requests to rename and reorganize its current charters to reflect more accurately the geographic locations and feeder patterns of its Kindergarten – 12th grade program (see table below). The Institute recommends the SUNY Trustees approve the revision request.