Forest Elementary School, Williamsville NY

Original Research by School Decision on Forest Elementary School

Forest Elementary School is a regular public school serving pre-kindergarten through fourth grade in Williamsville, with an enrollment of about five hundred students. The school sits on North Forest Road and is part of the Williamsville Central School District, which spans Williamsville, Amherst, Cheektowaga, and Clarence.

The school's student body is predominantly white, with smaller shares identifying as Hispanic, Black, Asian, or multiracial. About a fifth of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on enrollment of English learners and students with IEPs was not available.

On New York State Testing in English language arts, third graders performed at a solid proficiency level, while fourth graders showed a measurable decline, with proficiency dropping into the mid-range. In mathematics, third graders again performed well, while fourth graders dipped notably lower. A science assessment from a prior year showed strong performance at fourth grade. Across tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile relative to other schools in Erie County.

The school is among several undergoing a multi-phase air conditioning capital project approved by district voters. Forest Elementary is slated to receive AC during Phase Two, beginning in 2026 and running through 2027-2028. This upgrade addresses a comfort and learning-environment gap that has existed in older buildings, and was structured to avoid raising the district's tax rate.

The Williamsville area is a compact, walkable incorporated village about eight miles northeast of downtown Buffalo, centered on Main Street with historic mill-town architecture and a village-oriented neighborhood character. Housing values reflect a mid-priced suburban market. The village contains multiple parks and a library within its small footprint, and transit service runs along Main Street connecting to regional rail. Recent development has focused on infill multifamily housing along and near Main Street rather than sprawl. Property owners in the surrounding towns underwent reassessments moving to full market value in the 2024-25 school year, which redistributed school tax bills unevenly depending on each homeowner's new assessment.

Forest Elementary offers a traditional elementary pathway with no specialized magnet or charter structure. It is a neighborhood school serving its local area as part of a larger suburban district that includes three high schools and multiple other elementary and middle schools. The school does not carry Title I designation, reflecting its student population profile.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 383%

School 83% · District 78% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 477%

School 77% · District 73% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 372%

School 72% · District 74% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 466%

School 66% · District 70% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Science

Grade 495%

School 95% · district not reported

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

This schoolWILLIAMSVILLE 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 3Lower-income50%Higher-income78%28 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income45%Higher-income73%28 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income60%Higher-income90%30 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income60%Higher-income82%22 pp gap