South Pine Academy

South Pine Academy is a PK–5 elementary school in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools serving 765 students in the Steele Creek / southwest Charlotte area, where nearly all students (99.6%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. In the 2025-26 statewide ranking, the school sits at #1,245 out of 1,492 North Carolina elementary schools (17th percentile, 1 star). That remains well below the district overall — Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools ranks at the 57th percentile among North Carolina districts — but it represents a notable rebound from the prior year's 2nd-percentile result, the largest one-year improvement in the school's recent history.

Academically, 2025-26 results improved in every subject and grade compared with the previous year. Fourth grade math is the standout, with 61.9% proficiency, essentially at the state average. Fifth grade science also rose sharply to 51.5%. Reading, however, remains a serious concern: just 28.7% of 3rd graders, 42.9% of 4th graders, and 36.9% of 5th graders are proficient, trailing district rates by roughly 15 to 29 points at each level. One encouraging sign is the school's subgroup performance, which looks better than its overall ranking suggests: African American students rank at the 59th percentile statewide and English learners rank near the median (47th), indicating that improvement efforts are reaching some of the school's highest-need populations.

Within its immediate cluster, South Pine sits in the lower-middle tier. Neighboring schools serving very similar poverty levels — including Lake Wylie Elementary (54th percentile) and Steele Creek Elementary (37th percentile) — outperform South Pine in most tested areas, while Sterling Elementary and Nations Ford Elementary rank below it. Chronic absenteeism, at 28.3%, is improving steadily but still exceeds the state average of 24.2%. Given the school's history of sharp year-to-year swings, the latest gains are encouraging but not yet proof of a stable turnaround; sustained improvement over the next two years will be the truer measure of whether South Pine is genuinely turning a corner.