Summary:
Zip code 28146 has two elementary schools, Koontz Elementary and Dole Elementary, both in Salisbury, NC and part of the Rowan-Salisbury Schools district, which ranks 199th of 246 districts in North Carolina. Both PK–5 schools serve high-poverty populations, with free or reduced lunch rates of 92.8% at Koontz and 99.2% at Dole, and together enroll 942 students.
Despite posting nearly identical overall proficiency averages (25.0% vs. 25.1%), the two schools perform very differently by grade level. Koontz had a standout 3rd-grade year, with 57% proficient in math and 41.9% in reading, close to district levels. But those scores collapse dramatically in the upper grades: only 10% of 4th graders and 9.8% of 5th graders are proficient in math, and reading falls to around 15-19%. This likely reflects one strong 3rd-grade cohort rather than schoolwide improvement. Dole is the reverse: its 3rd-grade scores are low (18.8% in both math and reading), but 5th-grade proficiency rises to about 31% in math and science and 29.7% in reading. Dole outperformed Koontz on every 4th- and 5th-grade assessment in the most recent testing year.
Both schools face serious obstacles. Chronic absenteeism affects about 32% of students at each school, far above the state average of 24.2%. In state rankings, Koontz improved from dead last in North Carolina for two straight years to 1440 of 1492, while Dole slipped from 1452 of 1505 to 1485 of 1492 — the 0th percentile. Dole actually spends more per student ($11,955) than Koontz ($10,522), yet remains at the very bottom, which suggests higher spending alone has not overcome the combined challenges of poverty, absenteeism, and low prior achievement. Overall, families in 28146 should understand that both schools rank among the lowest-performing elementary schools in the state, though each has relative strengths: Koontz at 3rd grade and Dole in the upper grades.
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