W G Pearson Elementary

W G Pearson Elementary is a PK–5 school in Durham, North Carolina, serving 319 students in the Fayetteville Street area as part of Durham Public Schools. Nearly all of its students come from low-income households, and the school has made a clear climb from the bottom of North Carolina’s elementary rankings about a decade ago to its current spot at the 30th percentile statewide. Still, progress has leveled off after reaching a 44th-percentile high point in 2023–24.

What stands out most about Pearson is how uneven results can be. In the most recent year, 3rd graders outperformed both district and state averages in reading and math, with roughly 68% proficient in math and 63% in reading. But those strengths did not show up in the upper grades: 4th grade math proficiency was just 35%, compared to 61% statewide, and 5th grade science fell sharply after two strong years. The school also gets better comparative results for certain student groups than its overall rating suggests — especially English Learners, who have recently ranked near the top of comparable groups statewide. Chronic absenteeism has improved to 33.5%, below the Durham average but still above the state’s 24.2%.

Nearby comparisons tell an important story. Fayetteville Street Elementary, just half a mile away and serving a similarly high-poverty population, ranks far lower, with weaker 3rd grade scores and chronic absenteeism above 50%. At the same time, several Durham elementary schools with almost identical poverty levels — Pearsontown Elementary, Morehead Montessori, Southwest Elementary, and Burton Elementary — rank in the 69th–79th percentile, and all keep chronic absenteeism below 25%. Pearson has favorable resources, including a 9.9-to-1 student-teacher ratio, but closing the attendance gap and carrying strong early-grade results into 4th and 5th grades will be key to moving beyond its current middle-to-lower ranking.