Summary:
Altavista, Virginia, is home to two public schools—Altavista High, which educates 606 students in grades 6 through 12, and Altavista Elementary, serving 497 students in grades PK through 5—both part of Campbell County Public Schools, a district ranked 58th out of 131 Virginia districts.
Altavista Elementary is the higher-performing school relative to peers, ranking in the 61st percentile of Virginia elementary schools and earning 3 stars. In 2025–2026, every SOL subject tested was at or above the state average, including 5th grade math at 85.33% proficiency and a dramatic 25-point jump in 3rd grade math, from 55.13% to 80.77%. Altavista High, which also serves as the area's middle school for grades 6–8, has improved its state ranking from the 20th percentile to the 43rd percentile in two years. Its standouts include 100% proficiency in 9th grade Biology and 85.42% in 9th grade Algebra I. Both schools outperform expectations given their high poverty rates—72% free/reduced lunch at the high school and 78% at the elementary school—and both show particular strength in science.
The main concerns are at Altavista High, where the graduation rate of 90.6% trails the state's 92.3%, and the dropout rate of 5.6% exceeds the state's 5.0%. Upper-grade reading is a weakness, especially 7th grade reading at 65.43% and 11th grade reading at 83.08%, both below state averages. Chronic absenteeism, however, is a bright spot—10.8% at the high school and 9.5% at the elementary school, well below the 14.8% state average. Elementary scores are rising faster, but with the high school's upward trajectory, lower student-to-teacher ratio (10.4:1), and higher per-student spending ($9,160), both schools are positioned for continued improvement.
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