Cyrus P Frazier Elementary

Cyrus P Frazier Elementary in Greensboro, NC, is a PK–5 school in Guilford County Schools serving 327 students, nearly all of whom come from low-income households. The school currently ranks in the 10th percentile of North Carolina elementary schools, placing it near the bottom of the state, and its ranking has slipped in recent years after a brief improvement in 2023–24.

The most urgent concern is reading. Only about a third of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders are reading at grade level, putting the school roughly 15 to 23 points behind district and state averages in every tested grade. Math results are somewhat stronger but still trail, especially in 5th grade. Nearby schools with similar student populations show much better outcomes — Edwin A Alderman Elementary ranks in the 57th percentile and David D Jones Elementary in the 43rd — which suggests these results are not simply the product of poverty. Chronic absenteeism affects about one in three students, though several neighboring schools have even higher rates.

There are genuine bright spots. English Learner students at Frazier perform remarkably well, ranking in the 75th percentile statewide, and the school has shown occasional bursts of strong grade-level performance in math and science in past years. Since Frazier spends about $11,800 per student — comparable to far higher-performing nearby schools — the issue appears to be instructional consistency rather than a lack of resources. The strong English Learner results and the success of similar nearby schools both point to meaningful room for improvement.