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Stafford County Public Schools


At a glance
74thof 131 Virginia districts▼ 6
Better than 43% of Virginia districts
31 Stafford Avenue
Stafford, VA 22554
·(540) 658-6000·All Virginia district rankings →
Statewide performance 2018–2026
2026: better than 43.5% of districts
37
Schools
31,812
Students
Top rankedHartwood Elementary273rd of 1,111 Virginia elementary schools
Biggest riser
Widewater Elementary up 111 spots statewide this year
Smallest classes
North Star Early Childhood Education Center 8.5 students per teacher
SchoolDigger ratings
4★
3★
2★
1★
7 schools without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)
Summary:

Stafford County Public Schools serves about 31,268 students across 30 schools—17 elementary, 8 middle, and 5 high schools—in the Stafford, Virginia area, ranking 74th out of 131 Virginia districts with a 2-star rating. Mountain View High stands out as the top high school, ranking 68th of 331, with a 95.9% graduation rate. Colonial Forge High is a consistent 4-star performer (91st) with a 94.4% graduation rate, while North Stafford High improved 109 spots to 84th despite serving the highest percentage of economically disadvantaged high school students in the district. Among middle schools, Rodney E. Thompson Middle leads at 87th of 416 with only 10.3% chronic absenteeism and 8th-grade reading scores 15 points above the district average. Hartwood Elementary (273rd of 1,111) is the top elementary school, with 5th-grade math, reading, and science scores all above 85%.

Poverty and attendance data reveal important patterns. The district's free/reduced lunch rate is about 44.7%, with Anne E. Moncure Elementary (94.4%), Kate Waller Barrett Elementary (88.2%), and Falmouth Elementary (78.7%) among the highest-poverty schools. Chronic absenteeism is nearly double in high schools (23.8%) compared to elementary schools (13.2%), with Stafford Senior High (29.0%) and Brooke Point High (27.4%) struggling most—both also have the lowest graduation rates. Spending doesn't guarantee results: Ferry Farm Elementary and Edward E. Drew Junior Middle spend over $13,000 per student yet rank mid-to-low in their peer groups, while Stafford Elementary spends the least ($8,103) and outperforms many schools spending more. Academically, advanced math is a strength—Algebra I and Geometry proficiency range from 87-100%—but on-grade 8th-grade math proficiency is below the state average at every middle school. Social studies is a district-wide weakness.

Several schools show strong improvement, including North Stafford High (193→84), Stafford Senior High (234→169), Brooke Point High (238→191), and Park Ridge Elementary (744→596). However, Kate Waller Barrett Elementary has dropped over 340 places since 2023-24. The biggest opportunities are reducing high school chronic absenteeism, strengthening on-grade-level middle school math, improving elementary reading in high-poverty schools, and addressing social studies. The district's advanced math pipeline and high school English reading are genuine strengths to build on.

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private




SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Virginia Department of Education.

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.

Diagnostics