Sternberger Elementary

Sternberger Elementary is a K–5 school in Greensboro, NC, serving 469 students as part of Guilford County Schools, and it ranks among the very best elementary schools in North Carolina. In the most recent rankings, Sternberger earned a 5-star rating and placed 61st out of 1,492 elementary schools statewide — the 96th percentile. That is no fluke: it has ranked at or above the 94th percentile for five straight years, including an 8th-place statewide finish in 2023–2024. By comparison, the next-strongest nearby schools, Brooks Global Elementary and General Greene Elementary, rank in the 78th and 77th percentiles, respectively — a gap of roughly 20 percentile points.

Test scores tell a similar story. Sternberger's average EOG proficiency across math, reading, and science in grades 3–5 is around 86%, about 15 points higher than Brooks Global and General Greene and roughly 30 points above the Guilford County Schools average. Science is a particular strength, with 93.3% of 5th graders proficient. Chronic absenteeism is low at just 9.1%, compared to 30.8% districtwide. Subgroup performance is also notable: female, male, low-income, and disabled students at Sternberger have all posted rankings in the 96th percentile or higher statewide in recent years.

For parents weighing options in Greensboro, a few nuances stand out. Sternberger posts these results even though its student–teacher ratio of 16.1 is higher than every nearby school — a reminder that class size alone doesn't drive its success. The school's relative soft spot is 3rd grade reading, where 75.8% of students are proficient; that is still 24 points above the district average. Gifted students rank closer to average, suggesting the very highest achievers may not stand out as much as the overall student body. One data quirk to know: the free/reduced lunch rate jumped from 13% in 2023–2024 to roughly 99% the following year, which is almost certainly a change in meal-program reporting rather than a real shift in the student population.