The top reported proficiency rate is 99% in Social studies. The lowest is 59% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Thomas Jefferson Elementary School
Thomas Jefferson Elementary sits on Gomer Street in Yorktown Heights, serving kindergarten through fifth grade as part of the Lakeland Central School District. The school is a mid-sized elementary for its grade band, drawing from a community that is predominantly white with meaningful Hispanic and Asian populations as well. A relatively small share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which reflects the broader economic character of northern Westchester.
On the New York State Testing Program, the school's results are solidly above the statewide midpoint. Third-grade ELA and math both come in well above the majority of students proficient, and fifth-grade ELA is particularly strong, with the large share of students reaching the proficient-or-above threshold placing it among the school's clearest academic strengths. Math proficiency edges slightly lower as students move from third to fifth grade, which a parent might want to ask the school about in terms of curriculum sequencing and support. Fifth-grade science proficiency sits at a somewhat lower level than the ELA results from the same grade, worth noting though not alarming for a school whose overall picture is clearly above the midpoint relative to districts in Westchester County. The school's overall proficiency index places it above the median of that county comparison set, which contains more than four dozen districts.
Participation rates across subjects and grades are mostly in the high eighties and low nineties in third grade, but drop noticeably in fourth and fifth grade, particularly in science. Lower participation rates can shift how proficiency figures read, since students who opt out are not counted in the denominator. A parent looking closely at the numbers would be wise to ask the school directly about testing participation and whether it varies by student group.
Multi-year trend data was not available in the data provided, so it is not possible to say whether performance has been rising, holding steady, or softening over time. Data on students with IEPs and English language learners was also not reported, so this profile cannot speak to the school's special education or multilingual learner programming, though those are natural questions to bring to the school.
The district has been running an active capital program, publicly reported as a large-scale referendum-approved construction effort described as tax-neutral. Construction has already delivered new STEAM labs and renovated Library Media Centers at the secondary level, with infrastructure, energy, and safety upgrades ongoing. Whether that work has reached Thomas Jefferson Elementary specifically is not confirmed in the data, but the district-wide scope means families should expect some construction activity and can ask the school what phases have touched or will touch the building. On the budget side, the district publicly reported adopting its most recent budget with the tax levy raised to the maximum allowed under the state cap, a signal worth factoring into any long-range housing cost calculation.
Housing in the Yorktown Heights area is expensive relative to state and national benchmarks. The local market reflects values well above the New York state median, and prices have continued to appreciate year over year, though active inventory has grown more recently. Homes are predominantly single-family, built across the middle of the last century, on spacious lots. The market moves quickly by historical standards, with listings spending only about a month on the market on average at last measure.
Yorktown Heights itself is a car-dependent suburban hamlet in northern Westchester, organized around commercial corridors rather than a traditional walkable center. IBM's research campus is the area's most prominent employer. Parks, including Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park and Junior Lake Park, provide meaningful outdoor amenities. The town is served by three different school districts, so school boundaries here do not follow a simple geography, and Lakeland Central is one of those three.
Graduation rate is not applicable to Thomas Jefferson Elementary, which ends at fifth grade. Civil rights and discipline data were not available in the provided information.
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