Elementary Schools in Orange County Schools

Summary:

The Orange County Schools district in North Carolina is home to 7 elementary schools, serving students from kindergarten through 5th grade. These schools exhibit a wide range of academic performance, with some standouts like Hillsborough Elementary consistently ranking among the top elementary schools in the state, while others like Central Elementary struggle to meet state and district averages.

Hillsborough Elementary stands out with its exceptional academic performance, ranking in the top 100 elementary schools in North Carolina for the past 3 years. The school boasts the highest test scores across all subjects and grade levels, with 88.9% of 3rd graders proficient or better in math, compared to 73.4% for the district and 64.1% for the state. In contrast, Pathways Elementary has shown significant improvement, moving from a 2-star to a 4-star rating over the past 3 years and achieving above-average test scores, particularly in math and science.

The data also reveals substantial disparities in academic performance and socioeconomic factors across the district. While Hillsborough Elementary has a relatively low free/reduced lunch rate of 17.97%, New Hope Elementary has a much higher rate of 75.65%. This suggests a potential link between socioeconomic status and academic outcomes, which is an area that warrants further investigation and targeted interventions to address the achievement gap within the Orange County Schools district.

District Detail

200 E King St
Hillsborough, NC 27278-2570

(919) 732-8126

SchoolDigger Rank:
87^th of 242 North Carolina districts

See the 2025 North Carolina District rankings!

Grades served: PK, KG-12
Students: 6,982

Primary Schools: 7
Middle Schools: 3
High Schools: 3
Alternative Schools: 0

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				EOG Mathematics (2025)			EOG Reading (2025)			EOG Science (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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
River Park Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	240 St. Mary's Road	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-9326	523	36	14.4	37.5%	309 (59.1%)	27 (5.2%)	131 (25.0%)	10 (1.9%)	6 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (7.6%)	81	234^th of 1490 public elementary schools	84.3%		70.7	390^th of 1505 public elementary schools	74.1%	156	78.2	71.3	76.0	56.4	70.6	71.0	73.0	$10,994	$454	$10,540
Central Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	154 Hayes St	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 732-3622	261	23	11.1	98.9%	105 (40.2%)	72 (27.6%)	63 (24.1%)	4 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (6.5%)	34.1	1017^th of 1490 public elementary schools	31.7%		29.8	1102^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	26.8%	85	54.0	58.1	52.7	36.0	41.9	45.5	50.9	$14,465	$1,168	$13,297
Efland Cheeks Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4401 Fuller Rd	Efland	27243	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 245-4042	532	36	14.7	99.4%	175 (32.9%)	129 (24.2%)	154 (28.9%)	26 (4.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (8.8%)	61.9	533^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	64.2%		42.1	884^th of 1505 public elementary schools	41.3%	351	75.0	78.7	56.1	50.6	67.4	54.1	52.0	$11,292	$882	$10,410
Grady Brown Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1100 New Grady Brown Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 732-6138	406	31	13.2	59.6%	170 (41.9%)	46 (11.3%)	146 (36.0%)	12 (3.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.6%)	49.3	757^th of 1490 public elementary schools	49.2%		30.2	1094^th of 1505 public elementary schools	27.3%	337	65.7	58.6	51.5	49.3	55.7	50.0	55.9	$12,441	$1,012	$11,429
Hillsborough Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	402 North Nash Street	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-6137	435	30	14.6	17.5%	337 (77.5%)	28 (6.4%)	30 (6.9%)	11 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.7%)	90.8	98^th of 1490 public elementary schools	93.4%		90.6	108^th of 1505 public elementary schools	92.8%	10	88.9	75.0	74.3	68.1	80.6	82.4	87.8	$11,531	$386	$11,145
New Hope Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1900 New Hope Church Rd	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 942-9696	528	46	11.5	99.1%	142 (26.9%)	62 (11.7%)	273 (51.7%)	10 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (7.6%)	47.4	791^st of 1490 public elementary schools	46.9%		42.9	872^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	42.1%	81	67.8	65.4	58.5	36.8	56.8	39.4	58.5	$13,203	$1,160	$12,043
Pathways Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	431 Strouds Creek Road	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-9136	371	27	13.7	54.4%	204 (55.0%)	66 (17.8%)	57 (15.4%)	6 (1.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (10.0%)	80.8	238^th of 1490 public elementary schools	84.0%		52	715^th of 1505 public elementary schools	52.5%	477	82.5	78.0	74.6	62.5	70.0	56.7	79.1	$14,700	$1,138	$13,561

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
The Expedition School	3.48 mi	1	7^th
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	4.41 mi	20	30^th
Durham Public Schools	5.48 mi	57	163^rd
Eno River Academy	5.55 mi	1
Community School of Digital and Visual A	7.55 mi	1	226^th

See the top NC North Carolina districts

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.

Elementary Schools in Orange County Schools

District Detail

Hillsborough Elementary

River Park Elementary

Pathways Elementary

Efland Cheeks Elementary

Grady Brown Elementary

New Hope Elementary

Central Elementary

Districts nearby