Business First analyzed salaries at five key points in a typical teacher's
career, and used that information to rate the pay scales at all 98 Western
New York districts based on data compiled by the New York State Education
Department.

Percentiles indicate where a given paycheck ranks within a single district.
A salary in the 25th percentile, for example, is bigger than 25 percent --
and smaller than the other 75 percent -- of all teachers' salaries in that
specific district.