Best Public Schools in Zip Code 28689

Zip code 28689 in Union Grove, North Carolina, contains just one public school: Union Grove Elementary, serving grades PK through 5 with 247 students in the Iredell-Statesville Schools district, meaning there are no middle or high schools within the zip code itself. Because this is the only school in the area, it serves as both the benchmark and the standout. Union Grove is a high-poverty school—nearly 99% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch—yet it performs close to or above state averages in most subjects. In the most recent year, average reading proficiency across grades 3–5 was about 56.7% (state: 56.2%), and average math proficiency was 64.2% (state: 63.6%). That resilience against economic challenges is remarkable.

The school’s strongest academic area is 5th-grade science, where it posted an 80.6% proficiency rate in 2024–2025 versus 62.0% statewide, followed by a still-solid 71.1% in 2025–2026 versus 67.7% statewide. Recent grade-level results also show notable highs, including 71.4% proficiency in 4th-grade math and 60.0% in 4th-grade reading in 2025–2026—both above district and state levels. However, year-to-year trends are mixed: 4th-grade math jumped 16 points between years, while 5th-grade math fell 14 points, likely reflecting different student cohorts. Statewide ranking has slipped gradually from the 68th to the 58th percentile over three years, even though the school kept a 3-star rating. Chronic absenteeism is a clear positive: at 15.6%, it is well below the district’s 19.9% and the state’s 24.2%, a strong sign given the school’s demographics.

For parents, Union Grove Elementary offers manageable class sizes (13.6 student-teacher ratio) and modest per-pupil spending of about $10,600. The biggest drawback is the lack of local middle and high schools, meaning families must plan for a transition after 5th grade. Despite being a single-school zip code with high economic disadvantage, Union Grove consistently shows that its students can match or exceed statewide academic benchmarks—especially in science and 4th-grade reading and math—making it a dependable elementary option while it lasts.