Elementary Schools in Buena Vista City Public Schools

Buena Vista City Public Schools is home to two elementary schools—Enderly Heights Elementary (grades 2–5) and F.W. Kling Junior Elementary (PK–1)—serving a combined 445 students in a high-poverty, small Virginia school district.

The two schools work as a natural pipeline: F.W. Kling Junior Elementary serves the youngest students (PK–1) with no SOL test data, while Enderly Heights Elementary covers the tested grades (2–5) and is the clear academic standout. Enderly Heights holds a current state rank of 476 out of 1,111 Virginia elementary schools (57th percentile, 3 stars), improving steadily from 518th two years ago. Its aggregate SOL proficiency outperforms the state average in both 2024–2025 (72.8% vs. 70.8%) and 2025–2026 (75.2% vs. 71.6%). Particularly strong results include 5th grade math at 88.41% (state: 72.39%) and 5th grade reading at 84.06% (state: 72.42%) in the most recent year. F.W. Kling, for its part, cannot be judged by test scores, but it posts the district’s lowest chronic absenteeism rate at 8.0% (state: 14.8%) and a slightly better student-teacher ratio (11.8 vs. 12.7), indicating a healthy early-grade environment.

Both schools face extreme economic disadvantage, with free/reduced lunch rates above 92%, yet they remain competitive—Enderly Heights exceeds state averages in 5 of 8 tested areas in both recent years. Attendance is a clear district strength, as both schools fall well below the state’s chronic absenteeism average. However, grade-level performance swings are large (e.g., 3rd grade math dropped 30.3 points, while 5th grade reading jumped 33.2 points), likely reflecting small cohort sizes rather than schoolwide trends. An notable equity issue exists in spending: Enderly Heights spends $10,062 per student versus $7,008 at F.W. Kling, a 44% gap despite Kling serving the youngest, slightly higher-poverty students. Overall, Enderly Heights is the academic leader with improving rankings, while F.W. Kling is a strong early-childhood foundation for the district.