Kensington Elementary

Kensington Elementary is a K-5 school in Waxhaw, NC, serving 901 students — the largest enrollment among its nearby peers — as part of Union County Public Schools. The school is a consistent high performer, ranked 59th of 1,492 elementary schools statewide (96th percentile) with a 5-star rating, and it has stayed at or above the 94th percentile every year since 2015-16. Kensington sits within a striking corridor of top schools: Sandy Ridge Elementary, Rea View Elementary, Marvin Elementary, Weddington Elementary, and Polo Ridge Elementary all rank in the top 22 statewide. Kensington ranks just below those elite neighbors, but far above Waxhaw Elementary and Western Union Elementary, which are in the same district.

Academically, Kensington's EOG proficiency rates run roughly 20–30 percentage points above state averages in math and science, and 16–29 points above in reading. Recent math proficiency ranged from 86.6% to 91.1% across grades 3–5, while 5th-grade science reached 90.8%. The school's relative soft spot is 3rd-grade reading at 71.6% proficiency, though that still tops district and state averages. Chronic absenteeism is a bright spot: 9.3% versus 14.6% for the district and 24.2% statewide, with steady improvement since the pandemic spike.

What most distinguishes Kensington is its results for student groups that historically score lower across the state. In the most recent year, African American students ranked 7th out of 903 schools, multiracial students ranked 6th out of 181, special education students ranked 27th out of 815, English language learners ranked 9th out of 533, and low-income students ranked 47th out of 1,434. With about 12% of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, Kensington serves a broader socioeconomic population than several of its higher-ranked neighbors, yet still delivers top-tier outcomes. The overall picture is a large, stable, high-achieving school with a decade-long record of excellence in the Waxhaw area.