Education
Business First ranks Williamsville top school for the fourth consecutive year
By Lee Chowaniec
May 29, 2007, 10:25

Business First ranked 97 school districts this year and Williamsville toped the list for the fourth consecutive year, making it the first school district to ever achieve such honor.

According to Business First, Williamsville leads the pack because of its broad record of academic excellence:

* It has the region's best overall scores in mathematics and social studies, based on Business First's analysis of 2003-06 test results at every level from elementary school to high school.

* Sixty-nine percent of Williamsville's graduates received Regents diplomas with advanced designations last year, dwarfing the regional average of 39 percent. Students must pass eight Regents exams to earn advanced designations.

* It's one of just two districts where more than half of last year's grads earned superior scores on Regents exams in English, math, science, global history and U.S. history. (Orchard Park is the other.)

* No district ranks above Williamsville on the statewide exams for eighth graders in math, science and social studies.

"There's no doubt that expectations are high in Williamsville," says Smith. "But that's not a burden. It's a good thing because it brings us strong support from the community. We have a very active PTA. It's heavily involved in advocacy, donations and volunteering. So this is really a community effort."

Business First has also generated a series of specialized ratings to further illuminate each district's performance:

* Iroquois is No. 1 in cost-effectiveness, the so-called "bang for the buck" category. It spends money more efficiently than any other district, based on an analysis of expenditures and classroom results.

* Silver Creek is the biggest overachiever, as shown by a comparison of academic outcomes and socioeconomic conditions. Silver Creek is 41st in this year's district standings, which is 41 slots better than its socioeconomic rank would lead an observer to expect.

* Seventeen districts have won subject awards, which are given to the top 10 performers in four academic fields: English/foreign languages, mathematics, the sciences and social studies.

The following are the 2007 school district rankings:

1. Williamsville (Erie County)
2. Clarence (Erie County)
3. Amherst (Erie County)
4. Orchard Park (Erie County)
5. Bemus Point (Chautauqua County)
6. East Aurora (Erie County)
7. Iroquois (Erie County)
8. Alden (Erie County)
9. Alfred-Almond (Allegany County)
10. Grand Island (Erie County)
11. Wilson (Niagara County)
12. Sweet Home (Erie County)
13. Hamburg (Erie County)
14. Frontier (Erie County)
15. Lancaster (Erie County)
16. Fredonia (Chautauqua County)
17. Akron (Erie County)
18. Eden (Erie County)
19. Pembroke (Genesee County)
20. Lewiston-Porter (Niagara County)
21. Barker (Niagara County)
22. Southwestern (Chautauqua County)
23. LeRoy (Genesee County)
24. Holland (Erie County)
25. Starpoint (Niagara County)
26. West Valley (Cattaraugus County)
27. West Seneca (Erie County)
28. Niagara-Wheatfield (Niagara County)
29. Elba (Genesee County)
30. Chautauqua Lake (Chautauqua County)
31. Westfield (Chautauqua County)
32. Pavilion (Genesee County)
33. Depew (Erie County)
34. Sherman (Chautauqua County)
35. Springville-Griffith Institute (Erie County)
36. Ellicottville (Cattaraugus County)
37. Allegany-Limestone (Cattaraugus County)
38. Newfane (Niagara County)
39. Kendall (Orleans County)
40. Batavia (Genesee County)
41. Silver Creek (Chautauqua County)
42. Lockport (Niagara County)
43. North Tonawanda (Niagara County)
44. Albion (Orleans County)
45. Oakfield-Alabama (Genesee County)
46. Lyndonville (Orleans County)
47. Alexander (Genesee County)
48. Attica (Wyoming County)
49. North Collins (Erie County)
50. Pine Valley (Chautauqua County)
51. Cheektowaga-Maryvale (Erie County)
52. Byron-Bergen (Genesee County)
53. Letchworth (Wyoming County)
54. Yorkshire-Pioneer (Cattaraugus County)
55. Tonawanda (Erie County)
56. Frewsburg (Chautauqua County)
57. Falconer (Chautauqua County)
58. Kenmore-Tonawanda (Erie County)
59. Portville (Cattaraugus County)
60. Royalton-Hartland (Niagara County)
61. Clymer (Chautauqua County)
62. Evans-Brant (Erie County)
63. Fillmore (Allegany County)
64. Perry (Wyoming County)
65. Cheektowaga (Erie County)
66. Medina (Orleans County)
67. Panama (Chautauqua County)
68. Cleveland Hill (Erie County)
69. Randolph (Cattaraugus County)
70. Cuba-Rushford (Allegany County)
71. Wellsville (Allegany County)
72. Cassadaga Valley (Chautauqua County)
73. Belfast (Allegany County)
74. Whitesville (Allegany County)
75. Genesee Valley (Allegany County)
76. Olean (Cattaraugus County)
77. Cheektowaga-Sloan (Erie County)
78. Andover (Allegany County)
79. Brocton (Chautauqua County)
80. Holley (Orleans County)
81. Franklinville (Cattaraugus County)
82. Scio (Allegany County)
83. Forestville (Chautauqua County)
84. Warsaw (Wyoming County)
85. Bolivar-Richburg (Allegany County)
86. Jamestown (Chautauqua County)
87. Ripley (Chautauqua County)
88. Salamanca (Cattaraugus County)
89. Hinsdale (Cattaraugus County)
90. Cattaraugus-Little Valley (Cattaraugus County)
91. Gowanda (Cattaraugus County)
92. Dunkirk (Chautauqua County)
93. Niagara Falls (Niagara County)
94. Canaseraga (Allegany County)
95. Lackawanna (Erie County)
96. Friendship (Allegany County)
97. Buffalo (Erie County)


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