Summary:
The 28478 zip code in North Carolina is home to a single public elementary school, Penderlea Elementary, which serves grades K-8 with a total enrollment of 484 students. The school is part of the Pender County Schools district, which is ranked 115 out of 242 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.
Penderlea Elementary does not appear to be a standout school in the region, as its statewide ranking has fluctuated between 890 and 1,022 out of 1,502 to 1,505 North Carolina elementary schools over the past three school years, and it has consistently been rated 2 out of 5 stars by SchoolDigger. The school's test scores are generally below the Pender County Schools and North Carolina averages across various subjects and grade levels, with a 3rd-grade math proficiency rate of 55.6% in 2024-2025, compared to 65.2% for the district and 64.1% for the state.
Penderlea Elementary has a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, at 99.38% in the 2023-2024 school year, suggesting it serves a predominantly low-income population. The school's relatively low student-teacher ratio of 13.8 to 1 and moderate per-student spending of $9,390 in the 2018-2019 school year indicate that resources are being directed towards smaller class sizes and individual attention, but this does not appear to be translating into improved academic outcomes. The school's statewide ranking and star rating have remained relatively stagnant over the past three years, suggesting a need for more significant interventions or changes to improve student performance.
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