Education

There are many local government agencies and nonprofit groups working to educate children and adults in our community.  The organizations listed below focus on critical work relating directly to the indicators presented here.  Groups are listed by the sub-headings used in the "Topic Indicators" section.

School Readiness

An annual assessment of school readiness is performed by the Children's Institute.  This work is part of the Rochester Early Childhood Assessment Partnership, which analyzes our area's early childhood system from the perspective of the child, the classroom and the parent-family environment.

Academic Achievement

The New York State Department of Education, under the guidance of the Board of Regents, seeks to raise the knowledge, skill and opportunity of all the people in New York. The Department oversees a wide range of educational functions. One service is the development and maintenance of school report cards for each public and charter school and each school district in the state.

Local school district information can be found through the links provided by the New York State Education Department. For Wayne, Ontario, Seneca, and Yates Counties, additional school district information is available through the Four County School Boards Association. Information on Rochester city schools can be found through the Rochester City School District.

Boards of Cooperative Educational Services, or BOCES, provide shared educational services to most school districts in the state. These services are provided through 37 regional boards. The BOCES districts serving the greater Rochester area include:

  • Monroe 1, which serves the eastern suburbs of Monroe County.
  • Monroe 2, which serves the western suburbs of Monroe County, plus the Kendall and Holley school districts in Orleans County.
  • Genesee Valley, serving Genesee, Livingston, Wyoming and Steuben counties.
  • Orleans-Niagara, serving Orleans County (except Kendall and Holley), as well as Niagara County.
  • Wayne-Finger Lakes, which serves Wayne, Ontario, Seneca and Yates counties.

Currently, BOCES membership is not open to the "Big Five" city school districts: New York, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers.

The Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection combines part-time employment opportunities with comprehensive support services to encourage at-risk urban youth to remain in school and improve their academics. The program, in operation since 1987, reports that its participants are twice as likely to graduate high school as their peers, and 80% of the graduates go on to college.

Library Systems Available

The Pioneer Library System is a New York State chartered, cooperative public library system serving the forty-two public libraries in Ontario, Wayne and Wyoming and Livingston counties. One of 23 public library systems in New York State, it was created to enhance the service of and promote cooperation among its member libraries.

Public Support for Education

Local efforts to encourage and enhance public support for education include the following:

  • The Rochester Education Foundation strives to provide resources to improve learning and success for all Rochester public school students through the cultivation of partnerships between education, business and the community. The foundation has collected money, books and other items from businesses and individuals to distribute to schools and students. Other programs include annual education recognition awards and "Kidbridge," which links city and suburban schools for mutual learning, support and idea-sharing.
  • Monroe County Education Coalition is a partnership of local organizations advocating for public education, particularly for adequate funding.
  • The Monroe County School Boards Association provides links to a comprehensive listing of local, state and national organizations supporting education. The links include sections for advocacy, governments and research organizations.




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