Johnston Elementary

Johnston Elementary is a small PK–4 school in Asheville, North Carolina, serving 217 students in Buncombe County Schools, where nearly all students (98.6%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school has spent most of the past decade near the very bottom of North Carolina's elementary rankings—typically in the bottom 1–7% statewide with 0-star ratings. The 2025–2026 school year, however, brought a notable shift: Johnston rose to the 16th percentile statewide, earned 1 star, and left behind the bottom-1% territory it had occupied for years.

Recent test scores show where the gains are happening. Grade 3 math proficiency more than doubled, jumping from 22.9% to 48.9%, while grade 4 math rose to 50.0% and grade 4 reading climbed to 53.1%—within about 7 points of the state average, compared to 24 points below the year before. Chronic absenteeism has also dropped dramatically, from 72.2% in 2020–2021 to 23.8% in 2024–2025, falling below the North Carolina statewide rate for the first time. Johnston's low-income and English Language Learner students now rank near the state median compared to similar students elsewhere. Still, grade 3 reading proficiency remains low at 29.8%, and the school is small enough that scores can swing sharply between years.

For parents comparing nearby options, the picture is mixed. Johnston now clearly outperforms Woodfin Elementary, a nearby school with a similar poverty rate that ranks at the 3rd percentile. But West Buncombe Elementary serves a nearly identical population—98.1% eligible for free or reduced-price lunch—yet ranks at the 87th percentile and scores 20–40 points higher in every subject. That contrast suggests Johnston's recent improvement, while real and encouraging, shows the school is still building toward the level of the strongest high-poverty schools in the Asheville area.