POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, a tight-knit K-5 school in POESTENKILL, New York, one of the schools within AVERILL PARK CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, hosts 334 students, covering grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 443 students per school, that is 25% smaller than typical.

AVERILL PARK CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT runs 5 schools in total, collectively educating 2,543 students. POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of those campuses.

Demographically, POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL reports that 95% of students identify as White, making the school strongly White-majority; the rest is composed of 2% Hispanic, 2% multiracial. That is considerably more White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 80%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 21 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 15.6:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 12.8:1 average. About 25% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. By comparison, Rensselaer County runs at roughly 46%, so the school's eligibility rate is lower than the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 65.8% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 57.3%.

In the area at large, ACS estimates for Rensselaer County put median household earnings sit near $87,915, about 38% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of 42 public schools in Rensselaer County (combined enrollment of about 19,274 students).

Nearest neighbor: ALGONQUIN MIDDLE SCHOOL, around 1.9 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 7 other public schools cluster around POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ranks 6th on composite proficiency, behind the local average of 59.1%.

Geographically, the school is in a low-density area.

Looking at the recent track record. POESTENKILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL's enrollment has contracted 8% since 2018, when it stood at 365 (now 334). Class-load math has rose: from 13.0:1 in 2018 to 15.6:1 in 2025.

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