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Johnston Elementary

Q: Is Johnston Elementary a good school?

Johnston Elementary ranks in the bottom 2.7% of North Carolina elementary schools.

Q: How many students attend Johnston Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 217 students attended Johnston Elementary.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Johnston Elementary?

Students at Johnston Elementary are 40% Hispanic, 34% White, 19% African American, 6% Two or more races, 1% Pacific Islander.

Q: What schools do graduates of Johnston Elementary attend?

Students who attend Johnston Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Eblen Intermediate Middle : Erwin Middle High : Center for Career Innovation High : Erwin High High : Nesbitt Discovery Academy

Public Grades PK, KG-4

1450^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,490 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 3% of North Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Johnston Elementary is a public elementary school located in Asheville, North Carolina, serving grades PK-4 with a total enrollment of 184 students. The school is part of the Buncombe County Schools district, which is ranked 125 out of 242 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite its location in Asheville, Johnston Elementary consistently ranks among the lowest-performing elementary schools in North Carolina, with rankings between 1335 and 1492 out of around 1500 schools over the past 10 years. The school's performance on state standardized tests is significantly below the district and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. This persistent low performance suggests that the school faces significant challenges in providing a high-quality education to its students. The school also has a very high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, with 98.37% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in the 2023-2024 school year.

In comparison, the nearby schools, such as Woodfin Elementary, Sand Hill-Venable Elementary, Emma Elementary, and West Buncombe Elementary, generally perform much better than Johnston Elementary on state assessments, despite serving similar student populations. This suggests that there may be opportunities for Johnston Elementary to learn from the practices and strategies of its higher-performing neighbors and that the school may require additional resources, support, and targeted interventions to help improve student outcomes.

217

Students ?

12.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,890

Per pupil spending ?

98.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

230 Johnston Boulevard
Asheville, NC 28806-1823

(828) 232-4291

District: Buncombe County Schools

Students who attend Johnston Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Eblen Intermediate
	Erwin Middle
High:	Center for Career Innovation
	Erwin High
	Nesbitt Discovery Academy

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

40.1%

White:

34.1%

African American:

18.9%

See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

Compare Johnston Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 14th percentile in 2015 → 3rd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (28% vs 57% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (3rd percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 11 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school28%

District avg57%

North Carolina avg57%

1,450^th of 1,490

North Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 3%▼ down 11 pts since 2015

From bottom 14% (2015) to bottom 3% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

21^st of 21Elementary Schools in the Buncombe County Schools

125^th of 242Buncombe County Schools among North Carolina districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	6.7	1450 of 1490	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	4.4	1482 of 1505	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.4	1492 of 1502	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.7	1469 of 1514	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	8.1	1433 of 1489	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	5.7	1433 of 1473	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.7	1384 of 1434	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	9.6	1335 of 1429	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	33.1	1025 of 1425	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	18.9	1236 of 1440	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	19.1	1165 of 1390	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	35.7	929 of 1403	33.8%	★★☆☆☆
2012	23.3	1176 of 1388	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	29.6	1077 of 1381	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	18.2	1198 of 1363	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	20.9	1141 of 1354	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	20.4	1132 of 1324	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	40.6	885 of 1293	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2006	47.1	757 of 1276	40.7%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2019	22.7	824 of 949	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	9.0	913 of 927	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2023	9.4	513 of 514	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	24.4	421 of 485	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.1	322 of 385	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.0	340 of 497	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	23.0	371 of 421	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	4.2	1440 of 1451	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.9	1421 of 1455	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.9	1449 of 1459	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	10.7	1383 of 1458	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.1	1296 of 1440	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	4.6	1405 of 1424	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.0	1358 of 1405	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	14.4	906 of 961	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.9	907 of 915	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.9	877 of 893	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.4	841 of 843	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	21.8	768 of 865	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.1	775 of 851	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	18.0	1315 of 1437	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.6	1344 of 1450	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.2	1428 of 1437	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.7	1361 of 1366	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	16.7	1207 of 1329	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.2	1317 of 1361	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	18.0	1210 of 1332	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	13.7	1348 of 1450	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.4	1432 of 1464	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.6	1444 of 1461	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	5.3	1442 of 1464	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.0	1424 of 1444	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.6	1329 of 1430	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.4	1359 of 1413	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	19.1	1040 of 1172	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	4.2	1167 of 1183	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.6	1181 of 1183	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.2	1158 of 1178	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

African American (2019)13th percentile+10 vs school

White (2025)11th percentile+9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)8th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)7th percentile+4 vs school

Hispanic (2025)6th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)1st percentile~ school

English Language Learner (2023)<1st percentile~ school

By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Reading29%-24 vs state

Mathematics27%-34 vs state

★

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Schools Near Johnston Elementary

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 Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Johnston Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	230 Johnston Boulevard	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 232-4291	217	17	12.4	98.6%	74 (34.1%)	41 (18.9%)	87 (40.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.4%)	12 (5.5%)	6.7	1450^th of 1490 public elementary schools	2.7%		4.4	1482^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	1.5%	32	22.9	31.4					22.9	34.3							$14,890	$1,958	$12,932
Lucy S. Herring Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	98 Sulphur Springs Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Asheville City Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(828) 350-6600	255	22	11.4	46.3%	173 (67.8%)	33 (12.9%)	29 (11.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.5%)	69	408^th of 1490 public elementary schools	72.6%		67.6	451^st of 1505 public elementary schools	70.0%	43	76.0	42.9	69.0				76.0	50.0	66.7				81.0		$13,509	$1,024	$12,485
Francine Delany New School	Public, Charter	K-8	119 Brevard Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Francine Delany New School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(828) 236-9441	193	15	12.8		108 (56.0%)	41 (21.2%)	17 (8.8%)	4 (2.1%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (11.4%)	42.9	866^th of 1490 public elementary schools	41.9%		61.3	558^th of 1505 public elementary schools	62.9%	308	47.6	36.8	40.9	42.9	60.0	60.0	57.1	57.9	54.5	66.7	60.0	75.0	54.5	80.0
Emma Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	37 Brickyard Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 232-4272	277	22	12.8	98.2%	86 (31.0%)	36 (13.0%)	142 (51.3%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (4.0%)	18.3	1312^th of 1490 public elementary schools	11.9%		19.7	1288^th of 1505 public elementary schools	14.4%	24	32.1	49.1					26.4	43.6							$12,874	$1,531	$11,343
Asheville PEAK Academy	Public, Charter	K-6	27 Balm Grove Avenue	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Asheville PEAK Academy	Yes	No	No	No	(828) 239-3550	161	15	10.4		12 (7.5%)	109 (67.7%)	18 (11.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (13.7%)	42	880^th of 1490 public elementary schools	40.9%		32	1065^th of 1505 public elementary schools	29.2%	185	67.9	26.7	38.9	62.5			50.0	40.0	38.9	62.5			50.0
West Buncombe Elementary	Public	K-4	175 Erwin Hills Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 232-4282	580	39	14.7	98.1%	393 (67.8%)	21 (3.6%)	140 (24.1%)	7 (1.2%)	4 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	14 (2.4%)	81.9	220^th of 1490 public elementary schools	85.2%		86.1	166^th of 1505 public elementary schools	89.0%	54	80.0	84.7					60.8	63.1							$11,223	$1,315	$9,908
Sand Hill-Venable Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	154 Sand Hill School Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 670-5028	590	39	14.9	98.0%	311 (52.7%)	43 (7.3%)	213 (36.1%)	4 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	17 (2.9%)	31.2	1069^th of 1490 public elementary schools	28.3%		27.9	1141^st of 1505 public elementary schools	24.2%	72	49.0	44.6					42.3	50.0							$11,842	$1,597	$10,245
Hall Fletcher Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	60 Ridgelawn Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Asheville City Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(828) 350-6400	318	25	12.5	58.8%	171 (53.8%)	76 (23.9%)	40 (12.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.9%)	27 (8.5%)	40.4	910^th of 1490 public elementary schools	38.9%		40.9	912^th of 1505 public elementary schools	39.4%	2	51.7	60.9	50.0				41.4	60.9	44.4				47.2		$14,641	$1,562	$13,079
Isaac Dickson Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	125 Hill Street	Asheville	28801	Buncombe County	Asheville City Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(828) 350-6800	390	29	13.3	41.0%	220 (56.4%)	75 (19.2%)	36 (9.2%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.5%)	47 (12.1%)	62.6	520^th of 1490 public elementary schools	65.1%		67.2	454^th of 1505 public elementary schools	69.8%	66	83.3	50.0	51.6				84.8	59.7	54.8				62.9		$12,739	$936	$11,803
Woodfin Elementary	Public	K-5	108 Elk Mountain Road	Asheville	28804	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 232-4287	111	11	10.2	97.3%	39 (35.1%)	3 (2.7%)	60 (54.1%)	2 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (6.3%)	8.2	1442^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	3.2%		10.8	1416^th of 1505 public elementary schools	5.9%	26	25.9	36.4					14.8	40.9							$17,004	$1,575	$15,428

Frequently Asked Questions about Johnston Elementary

What district is Johnston Elementary in?

Buncombe County Schools

How many students attend Johnston Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 217 students attended Johnston Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Johnston Elementary?

Students at Johnston Elementary are 40% Hispanic, 34% White, 19% African American, 6% Two or more races, 1% Pacific Islander.

Is Johnston Elementary a good school?

Johnston Elementary ranks in the bottom 2.7% of North Carolina elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of Johnston Elementary attend?

Students who attend Johnston Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Eblen Intermediate
Middle : Erwin Middle
High : Center for Career Innovation
High : Erwin High
High : Nesbitt Discovery Academy

Rate Johnston Elementary!

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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.