Bonnie Cone Classical Academy

Bonnie Cone Classical Academy is a single K–6 elementary school in Huntersville, NC, serving 642 students, with 62.62% eligible for free/reduced lunch and a student-teacher ratio of 18.3:1. As the only school in this data set, Bonnie Cone Classical Academy serves as its own district, Bonnie Cone Classical Academy, and has steadily improved its state ranking from the 57th percentile in 2023–2024 to the 64th percentile in 2025–2026, earning 3 stars each year.

The school’s strongest academic area is reading. In the most recent test year, every grade level (3rd through 6th) outperformed the North Carolina state average by between 6.0 and 9.8 percentage points, with the largest advantage in 5th grade reading (65.1% vs. 55.3%). Math is also solid: the school matched or exceeded the state average in every grade, led by 5th grade math (67.9% vs. 62.9%). Across grades 3–6, average reading proficiency is about 63.4% compared to 55.9% statewide, and average math proficiency is about 64.8% compared to 62.5% statewide. In the prior year, scores were more uneven, with wide swings between grade levels; the most recent data show much greater consistency, suggesting more balanced instruction across grades.

Despite these strengths, two concerns stand out. First, 5th-grade science is below the state average in both reported years, though the gap narrowed from -15.6 points to -4.5 points (63.2% vs. 67.7% most recently). Second, chronic absenteeism is high at 35.9%, well above the state rate of 24.2%—meaning more than one in three students is chronically absent. Given that nearly two-thirds of students come from economically disadvantaged households, the school’s strong reading and math results are particularly notable. Bonnie Cone Classical Academy appears to be adding real academic value, but improving science achievement and attendance will be key to sustaining its upward trajectory.