15 Schenectady schools in need of improvement: state

PHOTOGRAPHER: Michael Goot

Most of the Schenectady City School District’s schools have been designated in need of improvement, the state announced today.

Fifteen Schenectady schools have been tagged as “focus” schools, which means they are not meeting academic standards.

Focus schools are those designated schools that have low-achieving students or low graduation rates.

Other districts with schools on the list are Albany, Amsterdam, Cobleskill-Richmondville, Gloversville, Northville and Troy.

Earlier this year, New York was successful in obtaining a waiver from the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind law. That law stated that all students had to be proficient in English and math by 2014. The new standard states that proficiency is defined in terms of college and career readiness.

High-achieving schools have been designated “reward” schools. In the Capital Region, this includes Niskayuna, Burnt-Hills Ballston Lake, Galway, Guilderland, North Colonie, Bethlehem and Lake George.