Press release of June 22, 2012

BH-BL again ranked 5th out of 85 school districts overall

Math scores 3rd in Capital Region & science scores 4th

BURNT HILLS: On June 22, the Albany-based Business Review newspaper published its annual compendium of rankings and data on public school districts in the Greater Capital District.

Their "Schools Report 2012" ranks Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake 5th out of the 85 school districts that serve grades K-12 in an 11-country area.

This is the third year in a row that BH-BL has ranked 5th overall.

BH-BL is the highest ranking school district in Saratoga County.

In another Business Review analysis, BH-BL ranked 74 in per pupil spending (after being 77th last year). This means that 73 school districts spent more money per pupil than Burnt Hills.

"To read that our student learning results were 5th overall while our cost per pupil was 74th is very exciting," says retiring superintendent Jim Schultz. "That combination is pretty hard to beat."

"Even in difficult fiscal times, this is a community that pulls together to do the hundreds of things necessary to bring about exceptional student achievement," he said.  "Getting results like this takes motivated, hard working students, engaged parents, and dedicated staff and school board members. We have all of those things here, supported by a fabulous community of residents and businesses."

Separate chart for Math and Science scores

In a separate chart released on June 21, the newspaper also compared student results on state math and science tests in the 85 school districts. This is the first year that the Business Review has singled out these test scores in this manner.

BH-BL math scores were 3rd highest in the region, and science scores were 4th highest. (See links below.)

Ranking based on state tests and graduation data

The Business Review's rankings are based on data from the State Education Department's 2010-11 School Report Cards, which is the most recent available data.

Rankings are based on the percent of elementary through high school students who met or exceeded state standards on various New York state tests in English language arts, social studies, science, and math. All NY students in grades 3 - 8 take these tests, and almost all students in grades 9 - 12 take the various high school Regents exams.

Also factored into the rankings is a score for high school graduation results that takes into account "the percentage of students who graduated with a Regents diploma with an advanced designation, the percentage of high school completers and the percentage of seniors who plan to attend college or some form of post-secondary school," according to the Business Review's website.

The "Schools Report 2012" includes a number of other charts as well.  According to their analysis the BH-BL median teacher salary ranked 15th in the region (the same as last year), and superintendent's salary was 24th in the region (down from 7th last year).

View the entire Schools Report 21012 here.

View the separate Math and Science scores chart here.

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