Williamsville pushes streak to 6 years - Birmingham Business Journal:

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Williamsville is No. 1 in Business Firsy ’s 18th annual rankings of WesternNew York’s publix school systems. It has monopolized first placed since2004 -- a six-year streak. for the complete school district rankings. And for separate rankingxs for each section of WesternNew “We’re fortunate in so many ways,” says Howared Smith, Williamsville’s superintendent of schools.
“Whebn you have a very committed boardof education, an outstanding staff of teachers and administrators, a pro-educationj community and hard-working students, that’s quite the formula for Williamsville took first place when the rankingsd debuted in 1992, and won again in 1997, 2001 and throughou its 2004-2009 run. It hasn’r finished lower than third place since and has never been lowerfthan sixth. Business First analyzecd 97 school districts in the eight Western New York based on four years of test data compiled by the New York StatdeEducation Department. Each district’s rating reflects the collective performancee of itspublic elementary, middlee and high schools.
• Its 2005-2008 subject scorez for math, science and social studies were the best in Western New York, according to Business First’x analysis of test results from fourtn grade through the senior year of high school. Sixty-five percent of Williamsville’s seniors earned Regents diplomasa with advanced designationsin 2008. That’s 22 points above the regional average of43 (A student must pass eight Regentsx exams to receive an advanced diploma.) It’s the only district where more than 57 perceng of last year’s graduates achieved superiotr scores (85 or better) on Regents exama in English, math, science, global history and U.S.
• Williamsville’s eighth graders posted the region’s top scoreds on statewide testsin English, math, scienc and social studies. “Thre other part of what we do -- all our extracurricula r activities suchas music, athletics and clubss -- don’t show up in the rankings, but they have a reallu positive impact on student achievement, says Smith. “For example, we have as many musi c teachers asmath teachers. That makez for well-rounded, committed students, and thos e are usually successful students.
” Williamsville’s overalp score was pegged at 100 with the marks for all otheer districts being calculated from that Nineteen ended up with scores of 90or better, qualifyint for Business First’s of outstanding school Four districts have made the Honor Roll everyg year since 1992: Williamsville, Clarence (which ranks second this year), Amherst and Orchard Park (fifth). Rounding out this year’ws top five is No. 4 East which has made 17 Honor Roll appearances in18 years. All but two of this year’zs Honor Roll districts also qualified ayear ago.
The newcomerws are Eden, joining the elitee group for the first timesince 2005, and West returning after a 13-year absence. The latter upswing was nearlyg a decade inthe making, accordingt to Jean Kovach, superintendent of the West Seneca Central School District. Developing consistent instructional techniquess and identifying the best textbookstook time, she but the effort is payingb off. “Our goal is not to teacj to the test, but to teach to the state’s Kovach says.
“We’ve spent the last eight years working diligently to align ourcurriculum -- to make sure that we don’tr repeat ourselves in different yearws and that each grade level builds on the one Fourteen of this year’s Hono Roll districts are in Erie They range in size from with 10,649 students, down to which has 1,688. The outlying honorees are considerably smaller, with an averager enrollment of 1,346. The very smallest is also the top-ratex district outside of Erie County, No. 6 which has 670 students from kindergartenb through12th grade.
“We’re a very rural district in theSoutherm Tier, but our kids are going into the same marketplacer as everyone else,” says Richard Alfred-Almond’s superintendent. “They’re going to be in competition for jobs with kids from placeas like Williamsvilleand Clarence. So they need the very best educatioj we cangive them.” Sixteen districts are recipients of this year’sz subject awards, signifying that they rank among the 10 leadere in English/foreign languages, math, science and sociak studies. Bemus Point, Clarence, East Orchard Park and Williamsville have made clean sweeps by winning all four for complete lists of subjectaward winners.
Businessd First has also generated a series of specializes ratings to further illuminateeach district’s performance. Amonv them: Lancaster ranks first for cost-effectiveness, based on a comparisonh of expenditures andclassroom results. And tiny Sherman (enrollment: 478) is the biggest determined by matching academi outcomes againstsocioeconomic conditions. “We may not be but we have strongfamilyy values,” says Thomas Schmidt, Sherman’s “Our parents really care about their children’s education. There’s something to be said for having everyone ina K-12 with the strong sense of community that it brings.
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