Elementary Schools in Edgecombe County Public Schools

Edgecombe County Public Schools serves nine elementary schools in eastern North Carolina with a combined enrollment of about 3,149 students, most of them in PK–5 or K–5 campuses, though Fairview Elementary ends at 2nd grade and Martin Millennium Academy is a K–8 school. The district is rated 1 star and ranks 215th out of 246 North Carolina districts, placing it near the bottom statewide. Every school in the district serves an extremely high-poverty student population, with free or reduced lunch rates ranging from about 96 percent at Stocks Elementary to 99.4 percent at G W Bulluck Elementary. Because poverty is essentially a shared condition rather than a distinguishing factor, the academic differences between schools stand out all the more.

G W Carver Elementary is the school to watch. It is the only 3-star school in the group, ranks at the 50th percentile statewide, and outperformed the district in every tested subject and grade. In 4th grade math, 72.9 percent of Carver students were proficient versus 39 percent districtwide, and in 5th grade science it essentially matched the state average. Stocks Elementary stands out for attendance, with a chronic absenteeism rate of 29.6 percent, the lowest in the district, and it posted the district's best 5th grade reading proficiency at 46.9 percent. Princeville Elementary, a small school of about 205 students, posted an impressive 61.8 percent proficiency in 3rd grade math, close to the state average.

At the other end of the spectrum, Baskerville Elementary and D S Johnson Elementary rank among the lowest-performing elementary schools in North Carolina. Baskerville sits at the 1st percentile with a chronic absenteeism rate above 53 percent, while D S Johnson ranks near the very bottom, with only 14.5 percent of 4th graders proficient in math. Chronic absenteeism is a districtwide concern, with every school above the state rate of 24.2 percent. Even so, G W Carver proves that strong outcomes are possible in this same high-poverty environment, and the district's biggest opportunity may lie in understanding why some schools succeed while others struggle.