Beta You're viewing our redesigned school list. Prefer the classic layout?

Best Public Schools in Star, NC

New rankings! SchoolDigger recently updated its North Carolina rankings with newly released test scores for the 2025-26 school year.

Be the first to know when we post new rankings!

At a glance

School

272

Students

Top rankedStar Elementary721^st of 1,492 North Carolina elementary schools

Compare North Carolina cities →See the top-ranked North Carolina schools →

Summary:

Schools in the city of Star, North Carolina, include only one public institution: Star Elementary, a PK–5 school serving 272 students in the Montgomery County Schools district. With no middle or high schools located in Star itself, this analysis examines Star Elementary's performance against its district and statewide benchmarks.

Star Elementary stands out as a bright spot within a district that is struggling overall. While Montgomery County Schools ranks in the bottom quarter of North Carolina districts with a 1-star rating, Star Elementary has earned a 3-star rating three years in a row and has ranked between the 52nd and 68th percentile statewide. Nearly 99% of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, yet the school's proficiency rates often rival or exceed state averages. In 2025–2026, 4th-grade reading proficiency reached 69.8%, far above the district's 42.9% and the state's 57.7%. Fourth-grade math was also strong, with 65.1% proficiency versus 42.1% in the district and 61.4% statewide. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 19.9% is lower than both the district (24.8%) and state (24.2%) averages, which is notable given the school's high-poverty population.

Despite these strengths, Star Elementary's state ranking slipped from the 68th percentile in 2024–2025 to the 52nd percentile in 2025–2026. This aligns with mixed test results year over year. Third-grade math proficiency dropped sharply from 75.6% to 66.0%, and 5th-grade math, reading, and science all declined by 6 to 11 points. Third-grade reading (48.0%) and 5th-grade science (57.1%) now trail the state averages by 7.6 and 10.6 points. On the positive side, 4th-grade math and reading both improved, and reading proficiency in 4th grade now exceeds the state by more than 12 points. Star Elementary remains a strong-performing, high-poverty school and a clear leader within its district, but recent declines in upper-elementary subjects and early literacy show that continued attention is needed to hold its statewide standing.

Load more schools when map is moved

Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOG Mathematics (2026)			EOG Reading (2026)			EOG Science (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOG Mathematics 3rd Grade	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Star Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	302 S Main Street	Star	27356	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 428-4333	272	18	15.1	98.9%	140 (51.5%)	10 (3.7%)	101 (37.1%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.0%)	50.4	721^st of 1492 public elementary schools	51.7%		65.2	483^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	67.6%	238	66.0	65.1	57.1	48.0	69.8	51.4	57.1	$10,072	$1,399	$8,673

Cities Near Star

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Biscoe	3.41 mi	4	440^th
Troy	5.04 mi	5	368^th
Candor	7.76 mi	2	464^th
Seagrove	8.26 mi	2	124^th
Mount Gilead	10.51 mi	2	429^th

See the top NC North Carolina cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.