Summary:
Martinsville City Public Schools serves two elementary schools—Albert Harris Elementary and Patrick Henry Elementary—both covering grades K-5 in a small Virginia city where nearly every student qualifies for free or reduced lunch and the district overall ranks in the 5th percentile statewide.
Patrick Henry Elementary is the stronger of the two schools on nearly every measure. It ranks higher than Albert Harris in the most recent state rankings (906th vs. 923rd out of 1,111 schools), and it has consistently outranked Albert Harris in each of the past three years. The gap is especially visible in attendance: only 6.9% of Patrick Henry students are chronically absent, compared to 16.9% at Albert Harris—a rate that is also well below both the district average of 15.5% and the state average of 14.8%. Patrick Henry also outperforms Albert Harris in reading at every grade level in both reporting years, and it leads in most math proficiency measures. Albert Harris does have a few bright spots, including a 75% proficiency rate in 5th grade Virginia Studies that actually exceeded the state average, and slightly better 5th grade science scores in 2025-2026.
What makes these results interesting is that resources don't explain the performance gap. Albert Harris actually spends more per student ($12,151 vs. $11,087) and has a lower student-teacher ratio (11.0 vs. 12.7), yet Patrick Henry still posts better outcomes. Albert Harris also shows significant year-to-year swings—3rd grade math dropped from 67% to 50% in one year while 5th grade math jumped from 52% to 67%—which may reflect smaller class sizes and changing classroom dynamics. For parents, the takeaway is that Patrick Henry appears to be the more consistent and higher-performing option, driven largely by dramatically better attendance and stability, while Albert Harris offers some individual subject strengths but faces greater volatility and higher absenteeism.
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