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Pleasant Ridge Elementary

Q: Is Pleasant Ridge Elementary a good school?

Pleasant Ridge Elementary ranks 1053 rd of 1492 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

1053^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 29% of North Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Pleasant Ridge Elementary is a large PK-5 school in Gastonia, North Carolina, serving 887 students in the Gaston County Schools district. Nearly all of its students (99.66%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, making it one of the highest-poverty schools in the area. Despite that challenge, Pleasant Ridge performs better than most of its closest neighbors. In the 2025-26 school year, it ranked in the 29th percentile statewide, which is stronger than nearby high-poverty schools like Chapel Grove Elementary (18th percentile), Gardner Park Elementary (13th percentile), Brookside Elementary (11th percentile), and Woodhill Elementary (2nd percentile). Only Robinson Elementary (39th percentile) and Hawks Nest STEAM Academy (92nd percentile) rank higher among comparable schools.

The school's clearest academic strength is math. Fourth-grade math proficiency reached 63.9% in 2025-26, exceeding both the Gaston County district average (57.1%) and the state average (61.4%). Fifth-grade math matched the district average at 57.7%, and fifth-grade science improved sharply to 61.3%. There are also encouraging signs of progress among student groups that often underperform: African American students jumped from the 20th to the 42nd percentile statewide between 2023-24 and 2025-26, Hispanic students improved from the 17th to the 35th percentile, and low-income students rose from the 20th to the 37th percentile. Gifted students ranked in the 77th percentile in 2025-26, a dramatic jump from the year before.

The biggest challenges are early literacy, English Language Learner support, and attendance. Third-grade reading proficiency was just 31.7% in 2025-26, well below the district (46.4%) and state (55.6%) averages. English Language Learners have ranked in the bottom fifth of the state for three straight years. Chronic absenteeism rose to 25.8% in 2024-25, above the district rate (23.2%) and higher than peers like Robinson Elementary (17.9%) and Edward D Sadler Jr Elementary (15.7%). Pleasant Ridge spends roughly $8,924 per student, near the lower end among neighboring schools. With its large enrollment, relative academic strengths, and clear areas for improvement, the school has real potential to keep climbing if early literacy, ELL support, and attendance improve.

887

Students ?

15.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

99.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1260 Floyd Lane
Gastonia, NC 28052-5225

(704) 866-6096

District: Gaston County Schools

Students who attend Pleasant Ridge Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Southwest Middle
High:	Hunter Huss High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

43.7%

Hispanic:

31.8%

White:

16.9%

See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

Compare Pleasant Ridge Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 3rd percentile in 2016 → 29th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 26 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (51% vs 61% meeting standards)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Reading scores 16 pts below the North Carolina average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school51%

District avg55%

North Carolina avg61%

1,053^rd of 1,492

North Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 29%▲ up 26 pts since 2016

From bottom 3% (2016) to bottom 29% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

145^th of 246Gaston 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
2026	32.1	1053 of 1492	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	26.0	1154 of 1490	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.0	1191 of 1505	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.3	1051 of 1502	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.7	1043 of 1514	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	38.6	890 of 1489	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	31.6	1074 of 1473	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	36.7	977 of 1434	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2017	12.6	1299 of 1429	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	6.0	1380 of 1425	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	23.4	1174 of 1440	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	10.1	1291 of 1390	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	7.2	1362 of 1403	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	33.5	1038 of 1388	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	19.1	1214 of 1381	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	5.9	1327 of 1363	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	17.9	1189 of 1354	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	16.1	1175 of 1324	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	22.8	1111 of 1293	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	17.4	1148 of 1276	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	43.8	520 of 903	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	32.1	674 of 918	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	27.7	738 of 924	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	34.1	646 of 933	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	41.2	533 of 927	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	48.6	376 of 896	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	26.4	783 of 949	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	54.5	387 of 927	58.3%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	24.0	540 of 634	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.2	645 of 646	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	21.7	790 of 878	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.3	846 of 897	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	25.8	437 of 519	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.9	460 of 563	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	27.2	440 of 533	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.2	332 of 514	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.2	348 of 485	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	43.2	175 of 385	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	37.4	321 of 497	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.7	354 of 421	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	37.3	945 of 1447	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	30.7	1070 of 1451	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.0	1176 of 1455	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.7	1084 of 1459	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	35.9	965 of 1458	33.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	46.1	734 of 1440	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	31.5	1050 of 1424	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.8	929 of 1405	33.9%	★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	68.3	171 of 743	77.0%	★★★★☆
2025	48.7	513 of 710	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	57.9	342 of 669	48.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	52.3	406 of 582	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	57.9	266 of 500	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	70.9	100 of 494	79.8%	★★★★☆
2019	44.8	500 of 612	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	38.9	639 of 981	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	31.5	713 of 961	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.4	793 of 951	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.6	649 of 915	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.0	714 of 893	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	37.8	516 of 843	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.9	582 of 865	32.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	31.8	644 of 851	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	39.6	902 of 1434	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.4	1141 of 1437	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.2	1163 of 1450	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.9	1068 of 1437	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.5	1066 of 1366	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.0	978 of 1329	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.5	1028 of 1361	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	40.3	852 of 1332	36.0%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	28.2	1098 of 1451	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	24.8	1170 of 1450	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	27.3	1139 of 1464	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.9	986 of 1461	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	31.0	1047 of 1464	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	31.5	969 of 1444	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	33.2	1055 of 1430	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.7	995 of 1413	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	70.9	44 of 175	74.9%	★★★★☆
2024	58.8	66 of 159	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	40.4	83 of 133	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.0	79 of 103	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	35.3	539 of 815	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	36.1	516 of 821	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	16.2	769 of 801	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	57.7	484 of 1146	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	52.3	563 of 1172	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	51.3	587 of 1166	49.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	58.8	483 of 1183	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	64.4	385 of 1194	67.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	61.3	423 of 1172	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	56.7	514 of 1183	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.8	641 of 1178	45.6%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Gifted and Talented (2026)77th percentile+48 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)75th percentile+52 vs school

White (2026)58th percentile+28 vs school

African American (2026)42nd percentile+13 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)37th percentile+8 vs school

Hispanic (2026)35th percentile+5 vs school

Female (2026)35th percentile+5 vs school

Special Education (2026)34th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)24th percentile-5 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)16th percentile-14 vs school

Disabled (2022)15th percentile-16 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Science61%-6 vs state

Mathematics57%-6 vs state

Reading40%-16 vs state

3.0

2 ratings

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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Schools Near Pleasant Ridge Elementary

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOG Mathematics (2026)			EOG Reading (2026)			EOG Science (2026)	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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	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
Pleasant Ridge Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1260 Floyd Lane	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6096	887	56	15.9	99.7%	150 (16.9%)	388 (43.7%)	282 (31.8%)	7 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	60 (6.8%)	32.1	1053^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	29.4%		26	1154^th of 1490 public elementary schools	22.6%	101	49.6	63.9	57.7	31.7	49.0	40.3	61.3	$8,924	$1,150	$7,774
Lingerfeldt Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1601 Madison Street	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6094	450	27	16.5	99.3%	49 (10.9%)	247 (54.9%)	119 (26.4%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.4%)	10.5	1413^th of 1492 public elementary schools	5.3%		5.4	1468^th of 1490 public elementary schools	1.5%	55	32.0	22.7	52.5	22.7	22.7	37.7	54.1	$9,976	$1,609	$8,367
H H Beam Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	200 Davis Park Road	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6618	591	39	15.0	99.5%	122 (20.6%)	174 (29.4%)	255 (43.1%)	3 (0.5%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	33 (5.6%)	4.9	1467^th of 1492 public elementary schools	1.7%		3.9	1476^th of 1490 public elementary schools	0.9%	9	39.3	30.9	31.8	25.6	25.8	28.4	36.4	$9,849	$1,567	$8,282
Woodhill Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1027 Woodhill Drive	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6295	577	35	16.6	99.5%	47 (8.1%)	309 (53.6%)	184 (31.9%)	6 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (5.0%)	6.9	1455^th of 1492 public elementary schools	2.5%		3.8	1479^th of 1490 public elementary schools	0.7%	24	34.6	45.8	23.0	25.9	36.1	21.3	32.0	$8,750	$1,400	$7,350
Sherwood Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1744 Dixon Road	Gastonia	28054	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6609	553	34	16.3	99.5%	86 (15.6%)	239 (43.2%)	164 (29.7%)	11 (2.0%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	51 (9.2%)	30.2	1091^st of 1492 public elementary schools	26.9%		10.6	1410^th of 1490 public elementary schools	5.4%	319	56.2	63.5	40.0	34.2	54.1	41.4	52.9	$8,790	$1,325	$7,465
Edward D Sadler Junior Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3950 West Franklin Boulevard	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 862-5895	374	35	10.8	99.2%	56 (15.0%)	157 (42.0%)	135 (36.1%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.6%)	14.8	1367^th of 1492 public elementary schools	8.4%		9.9	1423^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	4.5%	56	44.2	36.2	40.4	30.2	34.5	42.6	57.4	$9,464	$1,602	$7,862
Robinson Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3122 S Union Road	Gastonia	28056	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6607	420	30	13.8	99.3%	185 (44.0%)	129 (30.7%)	70 (16.7%)	7 (1.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (6.7%)	40	904^th of 1492 public elementary schools	39.4%		36	981^st of 1490 public elementary schools	34.2%	77	49.2	53.7	55.0	47.5	48.8	47.5	77.5	$8,960	$931	$8,030
Hawks Nest STEAM Academy	Public, Magnet	K-5	3430 Robinwood Rd	Gastonia	28054	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(704) 866-8467	356	24	14.7	36.0%	204 (57.3%)	82 (23.0%)	36 (10.1%)	15 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (5.1%)	89.2	126^th of 1492 public elementary schools	91.6%		88.7	125^th of 1490 public elementary schools	91.6%	1	86.7	88.3	78.0	81.7	76.7	69.5	83.1	$9,235	$809	$8,426
Chapel Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	5201 Lewis Road	Gastonia	28052	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 836-9113	382	25	15.1	99.2%	201 (52.6%)	37 (9.7%)	112 (29.3%)	3 (0.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (7.3%)	23.2	1221^st of 1492 public elementary schools	18.2%		30.5	1082^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	27.4%	139	59.3	37.9	45.5	39.0	45.5	38.6	59.1	$10,242	$1,403	$8,840
Gardner Park Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	738 Armstrong Park Road	Gastonia	28054	Gaston County	Gaston County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 866-6082	560	39	14.4	99.5%	126 (22.5%)	186 (33.2%)	193 (34.5%)	10 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	44 (7.9%)	18.7	1303^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	12.7%		18.5	1308^th of 1490 public elementary schools	12.2%	5	36.7	54.0	35.5	35.8	47.8	34.4	52.7	$9,619	$1,304	$8,314

Frequently Asked Questions about Pleasant Ridge Elementary

How many students attend Pleasant Ridge Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 887 students attended Pleasant Ridge Elementary.

What district is Pleasant Ridge Elementary in?

Gaston County Schools

What is the racial makeup of Pleasant Ridge Elementary?

Students at Pleasant Ridge Elementary are 44% African American, 32% Hispanic, 17% White, 7% Two or more races.

Is Pleasant Ridge Elementary a good school?

Pleasant Ridge Elementary ranks 1053^rd of 1492 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Pleasant Ridge Elementary attend?

Students who attend Pleasant Ridge Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Southwest Middle
High : Hunter Huss High

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Latest North Carolina data All new data »

2017–18 through 2025–26 attendance data & graduation ratesSep 2, 2026

2025–26 EOC & EOG test scoresSep 2, 2026

2016–17 through 2024–25 graduation ratesSep 3, 2025

2024–25 EOC & EOG test scoresSep 3, 2025

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.