West Middle School

Reviews

• Submitted by parent on April 07, 2024
  Believe the data. This is a failing school district in a persistently failing community in a failing region of NY (including Binghamton, Vestal and all of Broome County-what a cesspool). I pulled my children from West and enrolled them in a public school in a thriving community. What a learning curve. Went from A's & 100's with no effort to having to work very hard to catch up to the children enrolled in the reasonable school district from the start. Don't believe the defenders. No, this is not about the ethnicity of the children. In fact, all the children started school with the capacity for high levels of achievement. But they were enrolled in a school in the wrong region for achievement. This is not about poverty rates. The children in Binghamton School district from households with educated employed parents do worse on all indices than those living in poverty in the district my children were transferred to. Outcomes are also telling. Sometimes differences between school districts show many years later. But now my kids and their friends are mostly out of school so it is possible to look at differences in opportunities afforded people that graduated from different school districts. Whereas the children my kids met in their new district nearly all attended (or now attend) well rated 4 year national colleges/universities, now have exciting careers, and are thriving, their friends from Broome County went to local colleges if they attended college at all and most eventually settled into Broome County in a region saddled with a failing economy, few job options and downward mobility. In other words, they've settled into their parents community despite it being a failing community devoid of opportunity. People who exert effort to get their kids out of a failing region and their kids are probably different from those that don't in many different ways. Bottom line is that those graduating from schools in Broome County have nowhere near the opportunities available to kids in prosperous thriving communities. Don't delude yourself into thinking anything different. It's not just the poverty level. Those living in poverty elsewhere do better than the well-off children in Broome County. It is the attitude. It is being surrounded by failure, depression and other depresson-inducing aspects of the region. Get your kids out of there! ...More Reviews
• Submitted by parent on January 25, 2015
  This is a wonderful school for a wide variety of learners and learning styles. Both our kids have enjoyed it, from very different perspectives. The whole staff works hard to reach as many kids as possible. A few brilliant teachers and many wonderful ones, as well as a really strong administration. This school offers a Learning Lab night where parents and kids can try out baking, crazy science experiments, art projects. And everyone loves the 8th grade dance. Lots of enrichment possibilities, many choices. I love that despite the awful mandated state tests, they are keeping fun and invention alive at this school! ...More Reviews

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