Mary McDowell Friends School (Upper)
Grades and ages
Grades 9-12
Enrollment
167 students
Student-teacher ratio
6:1
Tuition
$90,000 (2026-27)
School photos
About Mary McDowell Friends School (Upper)
Our upper school on Sidney Place in historic Brooklyn Heights serves grades 9 to 12 at Mary McDowell Friends School, a K-12 Quaker school for students with learning disabilities that began in 1984 as a single classroom in the Brooklyn Meeting House. We serve bright students with dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, ADHD, executive function difficulties, NVLD, and language or auditory processing disorders, in classes that average 6 students per teacher.
Every upper school student has an advisor and a support team of language therapists, occupational therapists, social workers and psychologists. Teachers use Orton-Gillingham, the Hochman writing program and multisensory instruction, with FM systems in classrooms. Math runs from algebra to calculus, students take four years of Spanish or ASL, and juniors and seniors work with an assigned college counselor in College Seminar.
The building has science labs, a black box theater, a tech and media lab, a workout room, a courtyard and a student commons. Students play on Lightning teams in the ISAL, stage two main productions a year and choose from more than 25 clubs and co-curriculars. Tuition for 2026-27 is $90,000, with need-based financial assistance available.
Student fit
Who this school serves
Grades and ages
- Private
- High School (9-12)
Learning needs supported
- Dyslexia
- Dysgraphia
- Dyscalculia
- ADHD
- Nonverbal learning disability (NVLD)
- Executive function difficulties
- Language and auditory processing disorders
Specialties
- Learning disabilities
- Orton-Gillingham instruction
- Small class sizes
- Quaker education
- College preparatory
Learning and support
Curriculum and therapeutic services
Services and supports
- Language therapy
- Occupational therapy
- School social work
- School psychology
Programs
Programs at Mary McDowell Friends School (Upper)
Other programs and supports
- Language therapy
- Occupational therapy
- School social work
- School psychology
School facts
Practical details for families
- School Day
- 7 hours
- Student Body
- Coed
- Religious Affiliation
- Friends (Quaker)
Tuition and funding
Tuition: $90,000 (2026-27)
- Financial aid
- NYC DOE tuition reimbursement
Enrollment
167 students
Visit us
Location and directions
Map
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