Spencer-van Etten Middle School, Spencer NY

Original Research by School Decision on Spencer-van Etten Middle School

Spencer-Van Etten Middle School sits on a dedicated campus in Spencer, a small rural town on Tioga County's western edge, south of Ithaca. The school serves grades five through eight within the Spencer-Van Etten Central School District, drawing students from a community characterized by rolling hills, farmland, and a compact village core where two state routes converge. The surrounding area is car-dependent and largely residential; the nearest concentration of employers and services requires a commute to Ithaca, Elmira, or Binghamton.

The school is modestly sized for its grade band, with enrollment spread roughly evenly across the four middle grades. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which reflects the economic profile of the rural communities the district serves. The student body is predominantly white, with small Hispanic and multiracial populations and very few students from other racial or ethnic groups. Data on English learners and students with IEPs were not available in what was provided.

On the New York State Testing Program, the picture is mixed and varies noticeably by grade and subject. Math proficiency is strongest in grades six and eight, where well over half of tested students reached the proficient-or-above threshold, and weaker in grades five and seven. ELA results tell a different story: fifth grade lands near the middle of the scale, while grades six, seven, and eight all come in below that, with the sixth grade ELA rate being the lowest single figure reported. Science results, available for grades five and eight, are roughly in the middle range, with the eighth grade performing better than the fifth. Social studies assessment data in the payload dates from a much earlier period and does not reflect current performance; recent state social studies results were not available. Placed against other districts in Tioga County, the school's overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades sits above the midpoint of that comparison set, which includes six districts. That is a meaningful position in context, though ELA in the middle grades is an area a parent would reasonably want to ask the school about directly.

A graduation rate does not apply here because the school serves only grades five through eight and does not include high school.

On the facility side, publicly reported coverage indicates district voters recently approved a substantial capital improvement project, funded through state building aid and existing reserves with no tax levy increase. Work is slated to begin in spring 2027 and wrap up by fall 2028, meaning families arriving now will be early in that modernization cycle. The planned upgrades cover mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems alongside exterior renovations, a new playground, a resurfaced track, and a synthetic turf multipurpose field. The district has also publicly reported a multi-year pattern of moderating its property tax levy, using surplus funds to trim approved increases before they take effect.

Housing in the area is well below both the New York State median and the national median, and the market has seen meaningful year-over-year appreciation recently. Rental data was not available. The price-to-income ratio for the area is relatively affordable by national standards. Spencer itself is in a slow demographic decline, and county-level projections show continued population aging and modest working-age population loss, so families should go in with eyes open about the community's trajectory rather than anticipating growth.

Program-specific offerings for the middle school were not included in the data provided, so the depth of electives, enrichment, or intervention programming is something a parent would want to explore directly with the school or district.

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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
Science	13	92.0%
Math	8	100.0%

Math

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 32% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

Grade 668%

School 68% · District 67% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median

Grade 745%

School 45% · District 44% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 8 pts below state median

Grade 862%

School 62% · District 62% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 25 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 550%

School 50% · District 49% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 626%

School 26% · District 26% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 20 pts below state median

Grade 729%

School 29% · District 29% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 18 pts below state median

Grade 835%

School 35% · District 36% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median

Science

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 857%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 24 pts above state median

Social studies

Grade 588%

School 88% · district not reported

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

Grade 882%

School 82% · district not reported

▲ 4 pts above state median

This schoolSPENCER-VAN ETTEN 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 5Lower-income41%Higher-income68%27 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income19%Higher-income39%20 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income21%Higher-income44%23 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income36%Higher-income33%2 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income23%Higher-income53%30 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income66%Higher-income72%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income36%Higher-income61%25 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income60%Higher-income65%5 pp gap