About Us

School Details

School Number: K216

Address: 350 Avenue X Brooklyn, NY, 11223

Phone: (718) 645-2862

Fax: (718) 645-2610

Student Enrollment: Approximately 750 children

Grades Served: Pre-K, K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Principal: Donna Neglia

Assistant Principals: Andrea Ceretti, Rosanna LaFroscia

Geographic District: 21

P.S. 216's Mission Statement

P.S. 216 is a vibrant learning community where every child is known and supported. We foster strong partnership with parents and community that enhance learning. Through developmentally appropriate learning practices, students will become lifelong achievers and stewards of the earth and its resources. On the path to becoming globally aware citizens and leaders of the 21st century, we provide excellence in academics, a forum for positive social and emotional growth with an emphasis on civic and environmental responsibility.

Uniform school

P.S. 216 participates in the Chancellor's Mandatory Uniform Program. Monday through Thursday, your child is required to wear a white or light blue collared shirt or turtleneck, blue pants or skirt. Jeans are not part of our school uniform, and are not permitted. P.S. 216 tee shirts are available for purchase from our Parent Teacher Association and may be worn as a part of our school uniform. Friday is a dress down day and students are invites to dress down in casual, appropriate clothing.

Edible Schoolyard NYC

Putting Down Roots

In 2010, Edible Schoolyard NYC transformed the cement parking lot of P.S. 216 into a flourishing half-acre organic garden where students learn to grow and harvest roughly 160 different types of fruits, grains, herbs, and vegetables. With the third lowest percentage of open green space in Brooklyn, Gravesend was a natural choice for establishing our inaugural Demonstration School.

Creating Curriculum to Reflect a Community

P.S. 216, the Arturo Toscanini School, is an elementary school with a diverse student body and multi-cultural community of families from Coney Island, Brighton Beach, and Gravesend. The neighborhood’s demographics inform our curriculum. Whether we’re preparing Russian-style borscht or Pakistani and Indian aloo gobi, the classroom experience connects our kids to the cultures and heritage of their shared community.

“Try new foods and don’t yuck anybody’s yum.”

— Fourth grader at P.S. 216

To learn more about PS 216's Edible Schoolyard, please visit our Edible Schoolyard NYC page.

Yellow Kitchen Garden area with Gazebo Construction Truck

Leader in Me School

A Whole-School Transformation Process

The Leader in Me is Franklin Covey’s whole school transformation process. It teaches 21st century leadership and life skills to students and creates a culture of student empowerment based on the idea that every child can be a leader.

The Leader in Me is aligned with best-in-class content and concepts practiced by global education thought leaders. It provides a logical, sequential and balanced process to help schools proactively design the culture that reflects their vision of the ideal school.

Content from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is a key component of the overall The Leader in Me process. The 7 Habits is a synthesis of universal, timeless principles of personal and interpersonal effectiveness, such as responsibility, vision, integrity, teamwork, collaboration and renewal, which are secular in nature and common to all people and cultures.

The Leader in Me is also aligned to many national and state academic standards. The process teaches students the skills needed for academic success in any setting. These skills include critical thinking, goal setting, listening and speaking, self-directed learning, presentation-making and the ability to work in groups.

Great happens here

Leader In Me Tree

School Highlights

State of the art Kitchen (outside view)
Our Beautiful Dance Studio
Our Beautiful Library
Whats cooking?
Lead with Love
Our kitchen (inside)
What your favorite book?
Something smells good!!
Library Entrance
Look at Batman and Cookie in Mrs. Abreu's lab! How cute right?!
Our wonderful science lab!