The top reported proficiency rate is 99% in Science. The lowest is 57% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Elma Primary School
Elma Primary School sits on Rice Road in the town of Elma, a sprawling, rural-to-suburban community in central Erie County southeast of Buffalo. The school serves kindergarten through fourth grade as part of the Iroquois Central School District, with primary schools spread across Elma, Marilla, and Wales while the district's middle and high school campus anchors the Girdle Road site.
The school's enrollment is modest for its grade band, and its student body is predominantly white, with a small share of Hispanic students and very few students of other racial or ethnic backgrounds. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch is relatively low. Data on students with IEPs and English language learners was not available in what was provided.
On state assessments, third graders are tested in math and English language arts under the New York State Testing Program. In both subjects, a solid majority of students reached the proficient or above threshold, placing the school in the top quartile for overall proficiency when measured against districts in Erie County. That positioning is a genuine strength for a school at this grade level. A fourth-grade science result from an earlier testing year showed nearly all students scoring proficient or above, though that figure comes from a prior year and should be read with some caution as a current indicator. Multi-year trend data was not available, so it is not possible from this data to characterize whether performance has been climbing, holding steady, or slipping.
Because this school only serves kindergarten through fourth grade, graduation rate and chronic absenteeism comparisons do not apply here in the way they would for a secondary school; those fields were not reported for this entity.
Elma itself is a low-density, car-dependent town of winding roads, farmland, horse farms, and residential pockets. There is no walkable downtown or commercial main street. Civic life revolves around parks, a public library on Bowen Road, and dispersed town facilities. Moog Inc., the aerospace and defense manufacturer headquartered here, is the area's dominant private employer and gives Elma an economic anchor that most similarly sized suburban towns lack. The town functions largely as a bedroom community for Buffalo.
Home values in the zip code are well above the national benchmark and have been appreciating, putting Elma on the higher end of what Erie County typically sees. The county's housing market has seen a meaningful rise in both active and new listings recently, though homes are still moving relatively quickly. Families considering a move into the district should factor in that entry costs are above regional norms.
On the district side, Iroquois Central recently passed a capital project with community support that funds infrastructure upgrades at the high school and two primary schools, with work set to begin in 2027. Elma Primary is not listed among the specific sites in that project, but the broader district investment in building condition is relevant context for any family weighing long-term enrollment here. The project carries no school tax increase and is funded through state aid and district reserves.
Program offerings for Elma Primary specifically were not in the data provided, and discipline, staffing, and attendance figures were also absent. A parent wanting to understand classroom practices, specialist instruction, or enrichment options at the primary level would want to contact the school directly.
See more original research from School Decision →