Thomas Jefferson Middle School, Jamestown NY

Original Research by School Decision on Thomas Jefferson Middle School

Thomas Jefferson Middle School sits on Martin Road in Jamestown, the largest city in Chautauqua County and the postindustrial urban hub of New York's Southern Tier. The school serves grades five through eight as a regular public school within the Jamestown City School District, drawing from a city whose compact historic downtown and dense hillside neighborhoods reflect decades of manufacturing legacy and ongoing reinvestment. Employers like Cummins, Truck-Lite, WCA Hospital, and The Resource Center anchor the local economy, and publicly reported civic life includes the Prendergast Library, a riverwalk trail along the Chadakoin, and the National Comedy Center downtown. The area's housing market is well below statewide values, making it accessible to buyers and renters by New York standards, and the county is seeing rising active listings alongside modest home value growth.

The student body is mid-sized for a grades-five-through-eight building. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, signaling that a substantial share of families face economic hardship. White students make up the plurality of enrollment, with Hispanic students the next largest group and a meaningful multiracial population as well. IEP and English learner rates were not available in the data provided.

State assessment results on the New York State Testing Program are available for grades five through eight in math and ELA, and for grades five and eight in science. Across every tested grade and subject, proficiency rates are low. In fifth-grade math, only a small fraction of students scored at proficiency; sixth, seventh, and eighth grades show somewhat higher math rates, though still well below the midpoint among districts in Chautauqua County. ELA follows a similar pattern, with fifth grade the weakest point and grades six through eight running somewhat higher but still modest. Science results at grade five are in the same low range; grade eight science is a bit stronger but still below what one would consider solid ground. Taken together, the school's overall proficiency index falls in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Chautauqua County. A parent wanting to understand what support structures are in place for students performing below grade level would benefit from asking the school directly, as that information was not in the data available here. Trend data across years was not available, so it is not possible from this data to say whether results are improving, holding, or declining.

No data was provided on chronic absenteeism or graduation rate; the school does not serve high school grades, so a graduation rate does not apply here.

The district has made several changes families should know about. A capital improvement project approved by voters in late 2023 covers every school building, with construction at Thomas Jefferson expected in 2027. The work carries a tax impact that was not present in the district's earlier capital project. On curriculum, the district adopted a new K-8 literacy program in 2023 grounded in New York State's Science of Reading framework, with a phonics and phonemic awareness emphasis in early grades. Beginning in the fall of 2025, personal devices including smartphones and smartwatches are banned for the full instructional day under New York's statewide bell-to-bell restriction. Recent operating budgets have passed with minimal tax levy increases, a pattern relevant to homeowners watching property-tax exposure.

Course access, staffing, and extracurricular program data were not available for this school.

Jamestown itself is a city with a long-term population decline and a housing stock that is predominantly renter-occupied. Recent public investments in riverfront parks, wayfinding, and mixed-use redevelopment reflect deliberate reinvention. The school's neighborhood and the city it sits in will appeal to families who value urban walkability, affordability, and a historically dense setting, while the academic performance picture at Thomas Jefferson warrants direct conversation with the school about supports, programming, and the district's plans under its new literacy approach.

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Academic performance

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

New York Regents Exams

2 courses reported · 2024-25

End-of-course exams required for a New York Regents diploma. Each row shows the cohort size and the share of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

Course	Students tested	% proficient
Math	21	100.0%
Science	17	100.0%

Math

Grade 40%

School 0% · District 33% · ▼ 32 pts below district

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

Grade 510%

School 10% · District 19% · ▼ 10 pts below district

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

Grade 636%

School 36% · District 29% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 733%

School 33% · District 36% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 833%

School 33% · District 31% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 40%

School 0% · District 32% · ▼ 32 pts below district

▼ 53 pts below state median · ▼ 42 pts below county median

Grade 519%

School 19% · District 27% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 629%

School 29% · District 26% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 724%

School 24% · District 32% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 829%

School 29% · District 30% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 21% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 834%

School 34% · District 33% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 569%

School 69% · district not reported

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 865%

School 65% · district not reported

▼ 14 pts below state median

This schoolJAMESTOWN 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 5Lower-income15%Higher-income43%28 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income24%Higher-income50%26 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income16%Higher-income52%37 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income22%Higher-income63%40 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income6%Higher-income29%22 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income56%24 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income27%Higher-income58%31 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income30%Higher-income56%26 pp gap