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Best Elementary Schools in Zip Code 28778

New rankings! SchoolDigger recently updated its North Carolina rankings with newly released test scores for the 2025-26 school year.

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At a glance

Schools

853

Students

Districts

Top rankedArtSpace Charter School301^st of 1,492 North Carolina elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Williams Elementary up 335 spots statewide this year

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Summary:

Zip code 28778 in Swannanoa, North Carolina, is home to two elementary schools: Williams Elementary, a traditional public school serving grades PK-5 with 451 students in Buncombe County Schools, and ArtSpace Charter School, a K-8 charter school with 402 students that operates as its own district, ArtSpace Charter.

ArtSpace Charter School stands out as the higher-performing school: it ranks 301 out of 1,492 North Carolina schools (80th percentile, 4 stars) for 2025-2026, while Williams Elementary ranks 913 (39th percentile, 2 stars). ArtSpace's district, ArtSpace Charter, is rated 26th of 246 districts, while Buncombe County Schools ranks 109th. Test scores mirror the rankings: in 2025-2026, 5th-grade reading proficiency was 76.5% at ArtSpace versus 54.8% at Williams, and 4th-grade math was 71.7% versus 54.5%. ArtSpace also posted standout science results, with 88.2% proficiency in 5th grade and 90% in 8th grade, far above state averages.

Williams Elementary serves a very different student population: 95.79% of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch, and its chronic absenteeism rate of 27.1% exceeds the Buncombe County Schools rate (18.7%) and the state average (24.2%). ArtSpace Charter School, by contrast, has a chronic absenteeism rate of 16.0% and a student-teacher ratio of 12.7, compared with Williams Elementary's 15.8. Despite these challenges, the school improved substantially between 2024-2025 and 2025-2026: 5th-grade reading proficiency jumped from 30.9% to 54.8%, and its overall state ranking rose from the 16th to the 39th percentile. Still, proficiency in most subjects remains below district and state averages. ArtSpace has also trended upward, moving from the 63rd to the 80th percentile over three years, with particular strength in reading and science across its K-8 grade span. Together, these two schools illustrate how a school's structure and economic need can shape educational outcomes within the same community.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOG Mathematics (2026)						EOG Reading (2026)						EOG Science (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOG Mathematics 3rd Grade	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
ArtSpace Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	2030 US Hwy 70	Swannanoa	28778	Buncombe County	ArtSpace Charter	Yes	No	No	Yes	(828) 298-2787	402	31	12.7		339 (84.3%)	3 (0.7%)	28 (7.0%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.2%)	76	301^st of 1492 public elementary schools	79.8%		74	333^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	77.7%	32	60.0	71.7	68.6	65.2	54.2	47.5	67.5	69.6	76.5	69.6	77.1	80.0	88.2	90.0
Williams Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	161 Bee Tree Road	Swannanoa	28778	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 686-3856	451	28	15.8	95.8%	251 (55.7%)	20 (4.4%)	145 (32.2%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	28 (6.2%)	39.6	913^th of 1492 public elementary schools	38.8%		21.7	1248^th of 1490 public elementary schools	16.2%	335	57.4	54.5	53.4				52.2	52.3	54.8				57.5		$10,816	$1,108	$9,708

Cities Near Zip Code 28778

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Swannanoa	0.28 mi	5	332^nd
Black Mountain	2.28 mi	3	243^rd
Asheville	4.82 mi	34	247^th
Fairview	5.56 mi	1	23^rd
Fletcher	8.31 mi	3	126^th

See the top NC North Carolina cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.