Clinton Elementary School, Clinton NY

Original Research by School Decision on Clinton Elementary School

Clinton Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in a small, walkable village in Oneida County with a closely knit residential character. The school sits on a shared campus at the edge of Clinton village, where the elementary, middle, and high schools occupy a single site that has recently undergone substantial renovation and infrastructure upgrades funded by community capital referendums.

The school enrollment stands at around five hundred thirty students spread across six grades, with a student body that is predominantly white and drawn largely from the immediate area. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school does not report data on special education enrollment or English learner populations, which may reflect the demographics of the district or record-keeping gaps.

On state assessments administered in the most recent school year, Clinton Elementary's performance shows a mixed profile. In mathematics, proficiency rates increase with grade level: third grade sits at roughly half the cohort meeting proficiency, fourth grade slightly above that, and fifth grade climbing to a stronger mark. In English language arts, the pattern is similar but the third-grade cohort again hovers near half proficient; fourth grade holds around that level, while fifth grade shows a clear gain to roughly three-quarters of students proficient. Science proficiency in fifth grade sits at roughly six in ten students. These results place the school in the top quartile for overall proficiency when measured against the other school districts in Oneida County, which is a meaningful position. However, a parent may want to look into the specific skill gaps in the lower grades, particularly in third and fourth grade, to understand whether interventions are already in place.

The school's immediate context is Clinton village, a historic, compact community of about two thousand residents centered on a Village Green with locally owned shops and restaurants. Hamilton College, just over a mile away, is the dominant employer and anchor institution for the area. The village has experienced modest population decline in recent decades but is now the beneficiary of state Downtown Revitalization Initiative funding awarded in 2023, which aims to add housing and strengthen downtown amenities. The regional economy has modest unemployment and median household income in line with national benchmarks; housing values in the Clinton zip code are roughly in the mid-range for New York State.

The Clinton Central School District, the parent entity, has invested heavily in its physical plant. A major capital project completed in recent years rebuilt and upgraded all three school buildings, adding new doors, windows, safety systems, updated public address infrastructure, athletic field improvements, and a lighted synthetic turf field. In December 2025, voters approved an additional "Strong Foundations" capital project focused on roof and heating-ventilation replacements, funded through state aid and scheduled to begin construction in summer 2026, with no additional tax increase to families. These commitments signal sustained community support and a focus on facility quality.

State testing data was available only for the most recent year, so multi-year trends could not be assessed. The school does not report a graduation rate, as it serves only elementary grades. Detailed information on staffing levels, attendance patterns, discipline, course access, or specialized programs was not available in the data provided.

For a family considering Clinton, the school offers a small-town, resource-invested setting with demonstrated community backing. The proficiency results are respectable when compared to county peers, though third and fourth grade performance warrants a direct conversation with the school about literacy and numeracy support structures.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 351%

School 51% · District 51%

▼ 8 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 57%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 63% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 346%

School 46% · District 46%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 450%

School 50% · District 50% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 573%

School 73% · District 71% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Science

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 57% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 5100%

School 100% · district not reported

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

This schoolCLINTON CENTRAL 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income34%Higher-income54%20 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income55%19 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income60%Higher-income77%17 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income28%Higher-income66%38 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income43%Higher-income62%19 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income42%Higher-income71%29 pp gap