William Street School, Lancaster NY

Original Research by School Decision on William Street School

William Street School serves students in grades four through six in Lancaster, a suburban town east of Buffalo in Erie County. The school is part of Lancaster Central School District and sits on the north side of town.

William Street is a mid-sized elementary school with enrollment concentrated across the three grades it serves. About one quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly white, with smaller populations of Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial students; fewer than one percent of enrolled students are Black.

On New York State testing, William Street's math proficiency is solid. Grade four achieves proficiency at roughly a two-thirds rate, grade five at a similar level, and grade six performs notably higher, approaching three quarters. In English language arts, the pattern shows strength in grades four and five, with proficiency in the mid-sixties range, but grade six's performance drops considerably, falling to about mid-fifties on the state assessment. Science testing occurs only in grade five, where proficiency sits just above three fifths. The school participated in social studies testing over a decade ago, which is no longer administered in grades served here.

A reader comparing this school to others across Erie County's districts will find William Street's overall proficiency positioned in the top quartile among the county's elementary schools where state testing data are available. This reflects strength in upper elementary math and solid reading performance in grades four and five, though the sixth-grade English language arts slide warrants attention. A parent may want to understand what accounts for that decline and what support structures exist for students at the sixth-grade transition.

William Street sits within Lancaster, a largely residential suburb with a revitalized historic village core centered on Central Avenue and Broadway. Beyond that walkable downtown, the town is auto-oriented suburban development. Lancaster is experiencing steady growth through new single-family subdivisions and townhome communities, particularly at the south and east ends of town, which likely drives some of the district's enrollment pressures.

The district itself is in a capital expansion moment. Voters approved a major bond measure in May 2024 that will expand all four elementary schools, including William Street, to accommodate predicted enrollment growth. District offices are relocating into William Street School as part of this work, which begins late in 2025 and continues over multiple years. This means the building will undergo physical change and added administrative presence. That investment reflects confidence in enrollment stability but also signals that classroom capacity has been a concern. For a family entering the school now, this construction window is worth factoring in, though it also indicates the district is committed to addressing space constraints rather than managing overflow through larger class sizes elsewhere.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 468%

School 68% · District 67%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 569%

School 69% · District 69% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Grade 673%

School 73% · District 72% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 28 pts above state median · ▲ 40 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 465%

School 65% · District 64% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 567%

School 67% · District 66% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 657%

School 57% · District 56% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Science

Grade 562%

School 62% · District 61%

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 598%

School 98% · district not reported

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

This schoolLANCASTER 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 4Lower-income61%Higher-income76%15 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income59%Higher-income69%10 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income42%Higher-income62%20 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income64%Higher-income78%15 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income55%Higher-income74%19 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income56%Higher-income78%23 pp gap