Martin Luther King Jr #48, Buffalo NY

Original Research by School Decision on Martin Luther King Jr #48

Martin Luther King Jr #48 is an elementary and middle school serving pre-K through eighth grade in Buffalo's East Side neighborhood. The school enrolls a small student body across a full span of grades, with the bulk of the enrollment concentrated in the upper elementary grades. Its student population is predominantly low-income: a substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school serves a racially and ethnically mixed community, with roughly equal shares of Black and Hispanic students, a meaningful Asian student population, and smaller numbers of white students and students from other backgrounds.

The academic results across state testing reveal low proficiency across both English language arts and mathematics at every tested grade level. In third grade, where reading and math skills form a foundation, fewer than half the students tested met state standards in either subject. From fourth grade onward, the proficiency rates drop sharply, with single-digit percentages of students meeting standards in math at grades seven and eight, and similarly low results in English language arts across grades four through seven. Science results, available for fifth and eighth grade, show proficiency rates in the single digits. Across all subjects and grades, the school's proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among the county's districts. A parent may want to look into further with the school what supports exist for students who are not yet meeting grade-level standards and what the school's strategy is for strengthening outcomes given these patterns.

The district adopted a phonics-based, science-of-reading approach to literacy instruction with substantial teacher training, a fundamental shift in how reading is taught at every elementary and middle school. This curriculum change is now in place across the district and affects all students in the school's K–1 grades and above. The district also implemented universal free breakfast and lunch for all students beginning in the 2025-26 school year, a change that removes meal costs from families' budgets.

The district faces significant structural budget pressures, with a four-year deficit plan that includes ongoing staff reductions and the possibility of school closures or consolidations. In January 2026, district leadership reversed a planned closure of two schools and instead adopted an alternative budget approach while retaining a consultant to study potential future closures. This ongoing fiscal uncertainty creates some instability in the district environment, though no closures are planned for the current school year. Families considering this school should be aware that the district is actively managing budget constraints and may make changes to school configurations in coming years.

Buffalo itself is an urban city organized around walkable neighborhoods and a revitalized downtown. The city has invested heavily in adaptive reuse and new housing development, particularly on the East Side and downtown, with major mixed-income and affordable-housing projects now underway. The housing market is relatively affordable by regional and national standards, with median home values below state and national benchmarks. Public transportation is available through the NFTA bus and light-rail system, and the city's commercial avenues and downtown core are accessible to neighborhoods by foot or transit. This is a setting where families live in mixed-income, mixed-race urban neighborhoods with street-oriented retail and services nearby.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 341%

School 41% · District 34% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 411%

School 11% · District 26% · ▼ 15 pts below district

▼ 47 pts below state median · ▼ 37 pts below county median

Grade 58%

School 8% · District 23% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 33 pts below county median

Grade 614%

School 14% · District 25% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 74%

School 4% · District 24% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 49 pts below state median · ▼ 34 pts below county median

Grade 83%

School 3% · District 18% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 34 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 347%

School 47% · District 32% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 413%

School 13% · District 23% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 39 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 26% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 37 pts below state median · ▼ 27 pts below county median

Grade 615%

School 15% · District 27% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 30 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 710%

School 10% · District 26% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 37 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

Grade 819%

School 19% · District 31% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Science

Grade 510%

School 10% · District 20% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 32 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 83%

School 3% · District 17% · ▼ 15 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

This schoolBUFFALO CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.