Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School District is a suburban school district headquartered in the Hostetter Leadership Center in Burnt Hills, a hamlet in Ballston, New York.[2] In addition to the Town of Ballston (including the hamlets of Burnt Hills and Ballston Lake), it also serves Charlton, Clifton Park, and Glenville.[3] Today, district enrollment typically hovers between 3,100 pupils to 3,200 pupils, with 400-500 students enrolled in each elementary school, approximately 800 students enrolled at Richard H. O'Rourke Middle School, and about 1,000 students enrolled at the high school.
Stevens Elementary School (formerly the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School)
The district was established in 1915 so residents could have their own local high school instead of paying to send their pupils to surrounding schools. It was formed out of three existing districts, each having one-room schoolhouses, making it the first consolidated school district in the state. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake School of Agriculture & Homemaking was established in 1916 and the first high school graduation ceremony was held in 1920 for two pupils. In the early 1930s, the front facing side of what was then the Lakehill Road School, and is now Francis L. Stevens Elementary had burnt down, and was rescontructed. Fourteen additional districts joined in the period 1925 to 1962, all of which had one-room schoolhouses.[4]
Many additional buildings were constructed throughout the 1950s. Pashley Elementary, the first building with the intent of teaching grades K-6 was built in 1951 following the post-war baby boom; at this point, many children continued to attend one room schoolhouses. In 1955, the BH-BL High School was built, and the Lakehill Road School was converted into Ballston Lake Elementary School (renamed Francis L. Stevens Elementary in 1967 to honor the district's first superintendent). Next, Glenhaven and Charlton Heights Elementary Schools were built, using the same design in order to save the district money.
In 1961, a final school was constructed, and the Junior High became the third building in the district on Lakehill Road. Throughout the 1960s, every building received a new addition to accommodate for the district's growing enrollment, which peaked at 5,467 students in 1970.
The 1980s and 1990s saw a few more major changes to the district. Sixth grade classes were moved from elementary schools to the Junior High School in 1988, and the building was modified to service pupils grades 6–8. Then, in 1994 the building was renamed to Richard H. O’Rourke Middle School, to honor a long-time superintendent upon his retirement. In 1981, Glenhaven Elementary was closed due to declining enrollment in the district. The space was renamed the Hostetter Administration & Leadership Center, and held the district's administrative office until a water main break led to extensive damage in 2009.
Racism Incidents
2013 racism incident
At the October 2013 homecoming football game against Amsterdam, six to twelve[5] BH-BL students chanted the racial slur "Amsterico," aimed at Amsterdam's larger Latin American population (BH-BL is predominantly white) until the BH-BL head coach Matt Shell addressed the crowd and threatened to forfeit the game.[6][7] After the game, the coach told reporters that "There's no place for it", but also said that "Kids are kids, and they get emotional."[8] The BH-BL administration apologized to Amsterdam, and promised to address "the recent situation with the entire student body" and use it as "an opportunity to increase our efforts in teaching students the importance of diversity and citizenship."[9]
2026 Racism Incident
On February 11th, 2026, at Richard O'Rourke Middle School, a white, substitute English teacher directed the derogatory phrase, "Keep your cotton-picking hands to yourself." towards a black, eighth grade student. The district swiftly responded my launching an investigation and, by February 12th, removing the teacher from the BH-BL substitute teacher roster. A BH-BL spokesperson, on the day following the incident, released a statement stating, "Upholding a culture of safety and mutual respect is a primary responsibility for the district. We do not accept or overlook racist comments or actions in any form. We remain dedicated to ensuring our schools are spaces where students, staff, and visitors are treated with dignity."[10]
Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School is ranked #6 out of 47 schools in the Albany, NY Metro Area by U.S. News & World Report. It is also ranked #2,204 nationally, placing it in the top 12.5% of ranked American high schools.[12]
Burn Hills-Ballston Lake High School has a graduation rate of 96.4% (87.2% for the disabled, 87.7% for the economically disadvantaged).
New York Regents Examinations show far better proficiency amongst amongst Burnt Hills students compared to the state as a whole. For English, Burnt Hills has a 98% proficiency rate compared to New York's 79% average. For Algebra 1, Burnt Hills has a 90% proficiency rate compared to 62% state average. For Geometry, the school's rate is 95% compared to the average 57%, 98% to 74% in Algebra 2, and 92% to 67% in Earth Science.
Burnt-Hills-Ballston Lake High School offers the following Advanced Placement Classes (offering during a given time subjective to student interest):[13]
Miles Irish (Georgetown University) track and field, 4x Big East Champion, 3x IC4A Champion, only male athlete to hold 5x NYS track & field records at once
Josh Preseissen (Fashion Institute of Technology) artist, Emmy Award nominee for directing, album 'The Wolves Hollow Album' was critically acclaimed, Art Director at Neoscape in Boston, successful mobile game developer
↑"How to get to BH-BL Schools & Offices". Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School District. Retrieved April 12, 2019. BH-BL District Office located in the Hostetter Leadership Center 88 Lakehill Road, Burnt Hills, NY 12027
↑Home. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School District. Retrieved on April 12, 2019.
↑"History & Enrollment". Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School District. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
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