By Bert Gambini
Buffalo, NY – Seven schools in Buffalo are among a group of 57 in New York that have been identified as the "persistently lowest achieving" in the state.
Schools on the watch list are required to implement one of four drastic reform plans. They can be close; convert to a charter a school; implement a merit pay program; or replace the principal and at least half of the faculty.
Bennett High School, Burgard, Lafayette, South Park, Riverside Institute of Technology, Martin Luther King Multicultural Institute and International School 45 are all on that list. They are among the bottom 5 percent of lowest performing schools in the state based on English and math test scores and graduation rates from 2006-2008.
Schools that implement reform plans receive $500,000 in federal funds.