Best Public Schools in Zip Code 28371

Zip code 28371 contains just one school: Parkton Elementary, part of the Public Schools of Robeson County. This is a high-poverty PK-8 school serving 592 students, with a free/reduced lunch rate of 99.49%. Because it is the only school in the zip code, no local school-to-school comparison is possible; instead, the most meaningful context comes from comparing Parkton to district and state averages. Families in this area have no elementary or middle school choice within the zip code, and since there is no high school locally, students must transition elsewhere after 8th grade.

Despite a very low overall state ranking (1,384th out of 1,492 schools, placing it at the 7th percentile), Parkton has some genuine bright spots in its upper grades. In 8th grade math, the school posted 58.3% proficiency, well above the district's 33.7% and even above the state average of 53.0%. Eighth-grade science was also strong at 63.3%, beating the district by nearly 13 points. Seventh-grade math and reading in grades 6-8 all outperform the district as well. The most recent data also showed 8th-grade math proficiency jumping by 24.1 points over the prior year, suggesting that upper-grade instruction, particularly in math and science, may be a real strength. These results stand out even more given that the school's chronic absenteeism rate of 29.7%, while 12.4 points better than the district's 42.1%, still affects nearly 3 in 10 students.

The bigger concern is the sharp disconnect between upper and lower-grade performance. Fourth-grade math proficiency is just 15.1%, compared to a 46.5% district average and 61.4% statewide — a staggering 46.3-point gap. Sixth-grade math is nearly as weak at 18.2%. Third- and fifth-grade math also trail the state by roughly 14 to 27 points, and reading proficiency lags the state by 12 to 22 points across all tested grades. These lower-grade struggles likely explain why the school remains at the 7th percentile with 0 stars, and why its ranking slipped from the 10th percentile back down after a slight improvement. The most important opportunity for Parkton may be to figure out what is working in 7th and 8th grade classrooms and apply those successful strategies to its 4th and 6th grade math instruction.