Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Knollwood Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

1381^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 7% of North Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Knollwood Elementary is a PK–5 public school in Salisbury, NC, serving 585 students in a high-poverty area of the Rowan-Salisbury Schools district, where nearly all students (99.5%) qualify for free/reduced lunch. The school currently ranks in the bottom 7% of North Carolina elementary schools — 1,381st out of 1,492 — with a 0-star state rating. However, that is a noticeable improvement from 2023–2024, when the school nearly ranked last in the entire state.

Academically, Knollwood Elementary trails both the district and state in most subjects. For example, 3rd grade reading proficiency is just 26.6% — about half the state average of 55.6%. There is one clear bright spot: 5th grade math proficiency (55.3%) is actually above the district's 48.5%. The most striking part of Knollwood's story is what happens just a few miles away. Schools like Bostian Elementary (75th percentile) and Millbridge Elementary (71st percentile) serve nearly identical low-income populations, yet perform in the top quarter of the state. Meanwhile, a cluster of other nearby schools — including Overton Elementary, Hurley Elementary, and Koontz Elementary — rank in the bottom 1–3%, so Knollwood is not alone in struggling.

Knollwood differs from its higher-performing neighbors in some practical ways: it has a larger student-teacher ratio (18.8 vs. 15.6 at Bostian and 15.4 at Millbridge) and lower per-pupil spending than several nearby schools. Chronic absenteeism (30%) is better than the district average (34.2%) but much higher than Bostian's 11.4%. Progress has been uneven among student groups, with some subgroups improving substantially while others remain near the bottom. For parents, the takeaway is that Knollwood faces real challenges — especially in early literacy — but the surrounding district proves high poverty doesn't have to mean low performance, and the school's recent momentum suggests change is possible.

585

Students ?

18.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

Community Eligibility

All students receive free meals (2024-25) ?

87.7%

Kindergartners up to date on all required vaccines (2025-26)

Exemptions: 4.9% (any vaccine)

3075 Shue Rd
Salisbury, NC 28147-6638

(704) 857-3400

District: Rowan-Salisbury Schools

Students who attend Knollwood Elementary usually attend:

Middle:

Southeast Middle

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

54.4%

White:

21.5%

African American:

16.2%

See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

Compare Knollwood Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 9th percentile in 2016 → 7th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (39% vs 61% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (7th percentile)

!Reading scores 23 pts below the North Carolina average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school39%

District avg46%

North Carolina avg61%

1,381^st of 1,492

North Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 7%▼ down 1 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

199^th of 246Rowan-Salisbury 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	13.6	1381 of 1492	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	6.0	1459 of 1490	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.9	1494 of 1505	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.7	1451 of 1502	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.7	1377 of 1514	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.8	1314 of 1489	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.4	1333 of 1473	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.6	1322 of 1434	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	17.1	1250 of 1429	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	12.9	1299 of 1425	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	8.8	1354 of 1440	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	18.6	1176 of 1390	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	29.7	1039 of 1403	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	18.0	1237 of 1388	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	20.5	1193 of 1381	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	25.9	1098 of 1363	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	21.1	1139 of 1354	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	29.3	1019 of 1324	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	41.9	863 of 1293	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2006	38.4	887 of 1276	30.5%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	36.2	625 of 903	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	23.7	782 of 918	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	10.5	900 of 924	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	29.4	699 of 933	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	39.9	546 of 927	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	22.4	828 of 949	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.9	714 of 927	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	16.5	487 of 519	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	19.5	519 of 563	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.4	531 of 533	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.1	512 of 514	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.1	443 of 485	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	23.3	338 of 385	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.0	451 of 497	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.0	406 of 421	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	18.4	1283 of 1447	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	5.4	1432 of 1451	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.3	1445 of 1455	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.9	1418 of 1459	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.7	1370 of 1458	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	12.9	1317 of 1440	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.7	1314 of 1424	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.2	1339 of 1405	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	46.7	583 of 743	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.0	672 of 710	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.7	663 of 669	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.0	564 of 582	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	27.3	586 of 612	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	29.7	761 of 981	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.9	913 of 961	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.2	948 of 951	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.9	890 of 915	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.5	835 of 893	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.6	747 of 843	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.5	802 of 865	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.8	812 of 851	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	25.7	1204 of 1434	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	10.5	1397 of 1437	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	4.9	1441 of 1450	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.0	1381 of 1437	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	31.5	1003 of 1366	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.8	871 of 1329	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	21.4	1177 of 1361	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	19.3	1191 of 1332	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	10.9	1387 of 1451	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	10.7	1381 of 1450	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.7	1450 of 1464	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.7	1402 of 1461	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.0	1271 of 1464	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.7	1203 of 1444	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.1	1292 of 1430	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	17.7	1244 of 1413	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	6.9	1124 of 1146	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	2.3	1165 of 1172	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.4	1161 of 1166	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	2.5	1173 of 1183	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.9	1173 of 1194	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.9	1155 of 1172	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.8	1092 of 1183	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	22.5	1029 of 1178	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)31st percentile+23 vs school

Hispanic (2026)22nd percentile+15 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)22nd percentile+14 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)16th percentile+9 vs school

Female (2026)11th percentile+4 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)6th percentile~ school

Male (2026)4th percentile-3 vs school

White (2026)2nd percentile-6 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Science51%-17 vs state

Mathematics41%-22 vs state

Reading33%-23 vs state

1.0

1 rating · 1 written review

5★0

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

Rate Knollwood Elementary

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

What people are saying

by a parent on FaceBook
Friday, June 24, 2011

This is the first year my children have be to knollwood elementary and they have both had to visit sergeants do to incidents at knollwood. Both times I have received a call that they have over exaggerated a slight incident. My daughter had a piece of wood go under her nail from her knuckle to the tip of the finger and had to get it surgically removed and u could see the wood clearly. My son was being harassed through out the year the teachers knew about it and I never was told about it. They second to last day of school the child punched my son in the face. The school only suspended the child for a day. My son told the office that something was wrong with his jaw. The woman at the office called him a liar n told him to sit down. They called me and told me he was hit and had a red spot. Once I got there I saw that his jaw was crooked and on the other side of his face he could barely talk. I took him to the doctor and his jaw was broken. This was not the first time the bully had harassed other children may parents had told me afterward about this child harassing there children and the school not do anything. My son cant go to summer camp, swim, skateboard, or anything this summer due to the incident. Now do you think this is a school that is suitable for your child or would you like to know your child is save? Close Quote

Schools Near Knollwood Elementary

Load more schools when map is moved

Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOG Mathematics (2026)			EOG Reading (2026)			EOG Science (2026)	Vaccination (2025-26)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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	Vaccination: Kindergartners up to date on all required vaccines	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Knollwood Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3075 Shue Rd	Salisbury	28147	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 857-3400	585	31	18.8	—	126 (21.5%)	95 (16.2%)	318 (54.4%)	2 (0.3%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (6.5%)	13.6	1381^st of 1492 public elementary schools	7.4%		6	1459^th of 1490 public elementary schools	2.1%	78	36.7	31.0	55.3	26.6	35.3	36.0	50.6	87.7%	4.9%	$9,926	$1,540	$8,386
China Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	514 South Franklin St	China Grove	28023	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 857-7708	592	32	18.5	—	326 (55.1%)	47 (7.9%)	172 (29.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (7.8%)	20.6	1266^th of 1492 public elementary schools	15.1%		9.2	1433^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	3.8%	167	48.1	39.2	46.2	46.3	43.3	33.0	58.2	96.6%	1.1%	$9,544	$1,171	$8,373
Koontz Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	685 East Ritchie Rd	Salisbury	28146	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 216-0273	554	38	14.7	92.8%	65 (11.7%)	278 (50.2%)	164 (29.6%)	3 (0.5%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (7.4%)	8.5	1440^th of 1492 public elementary schools	3.5%		0.9	1490^th of 1490 public elementary schools	0.0%	50	57.0	10.0	9.8	41.9	18.9	15.2	22.5	93.8%	2.1%	$10,522	$1,875	$8,647
Millbridge Elementary	Public	K-5	155 Ed Deal Rd	China Grove	28023	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 855-5591	547	35	15.4	—	410 (75.0%)	10 (1.8%)	94 (17.2%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (5.5%)	69.1	432^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	71.0%		70	394^th of 1490 public elementary schools	73.6%	38	75.0	69.8	71.2	62.0	61.3	55.8	78.8	77.1%	8.4%	$10,417	$1,251	$9,166
Landis Elementary	Public	K-5	801 West Ryder Ave	Landis	28088	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 857-3111	613	33	18.6	—	304 (49.6%)	91 (14.8%)	174 (28.4%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (6.5%)	52.7	683^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	54.2%		54.9	657^th of 1490 public elementary schools	55.9%	26	69.4	59.5	70.1	46.3	57.8	51.4	68.2	83.7%	1.9%	$10,725	$1,433	$9,293
Hurley Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	625 Hurley School Rd	Salisbury	28147	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 639-3038	466	31	14.8	—	68 (14.6%)	176 (37.8%)	179 (38.4%)	6 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (7.9%)	4.6	1468^th of 1492 public elementary schools	1.6%		4	1475^th of 1490 public elementary schools	1.0%	7	14.9	9.6	26.9	23.9	24.7	30.8	48.7	89.4%	0%	$10,704	$1,927	$8,777
Bostian Elementary	Public	K-5	4245 Old Beatty Ford Rd	China Grove	28023	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 857-2322	342	22	15.6	—	283 (82.7%)	10 (2.9%)	34 (9.9%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (3.5%)	72	378^th of 1492 public elementary schools	74.7%		58.4	592^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	60.3%	214	82.0	68.3	80.0	56.0	58.7	58.3	86.7	87%	9.3%	$11,138	$1,209	$9,929
Granite Quarry Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	118 South Walnut St	Salisbury	28072	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 279-2154	586	29	19.9	—	284 (48.5%)	128 (21.8%)	105 (17.9%)	8 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	61 (10.4%)	19.8	1283^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	14.0%		19.1	1295^th of 1490 public elementary schools	13.1%	12	50.0	34.4	45.5	30.5	49.0	41.6	55.7	91.5%	2.4%	$9,473	$1,028	$8,446
Isenberg Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2800 Jake Alexander Blvd N	Salisbury	28147	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 639-3009	509	34	15.0	95.3%	95 (18.7%)	249 (48.9%)	109 (21.4%)	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (9.8%)	19.9	1280^th of 1492 public elementary schools	14.2%		25	1185^th of 1490 public elementary schools	20.5%	95	51.9	42.2	31.8	45.0	43.4	28.2	61.2	88.8%	0%	$10,360	$1,726	$8,634
Overton Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1825 Park Rd W	Salisbury	28144	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 639-3000	237	15	15.3	92.0%	24 (10.1%)	109 (46.0%)	73 (30.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (12.7%)	3.9	1475^th of 1492 public elementary schools	1.1%		6.7	1451^st of 1490 public elementary schools	2.6%	24	18.6	28.6	31.4	23.3	26.3	31.4	37.1	86.7%	2.2%	$12,485	$2,175	$10,310

Frequently Asked Questions about Knollwood Elementary

Is Knollwood Elementary a good school?

Knollwood Elementary ranks in the bottom 7.4% of North Carolina elementary schools.

What district is Knollwood Elementary in?

Rowan-Salisbury Schools

How many students attend Knollwood Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 585 students attended Knollwood Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Knollwood Elementary attend?

Students who attend Knollwood Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Southeast Middle

What is the racial makeup of Knollwood Elementary?

Students at Knollwood Elementary are 54% Hispanic, 22% White, 16% African American, 6% Two or more races, 1% American Indian.

Rate Knollwood Elementary!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

NCNorth Carolina Elementary School Rankings

NCNorth Carolina District Rankings

Schools in Salisbury, NC

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Knollwood Elementary!

Latest North Carolina data All new data »

2025–26 graduation rates (updated)NewNov 2, 2026

2020–21 through 2025–26 immunization ratesOct 19, 2026

2022–23 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

2017–18 through 2024–25 attendance dataSep 2, 2026

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.