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Gunston Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-6
300th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,111 Virginia Elementary Schools
Better than 73% of Virginia elementary schools
Summary

Gunston Elementary is a PK–6 school in Lorton, Virginia, serving 530 students within Fairfax County Public Schools. In 2025–2026, Gunston ranked 300th out of 1,111 Virginia elementary schools, placing it in the 73rd percentile with a 4-star rating. This is not a one-year fluke: the school has climbed from the 33rd percentile in 2015–2016 to the mid-70s in recent years, reflecting a sustained decade-long turnaround.

Academically, Gunston shines brightest in math and science. Its 5th grade math proficiency rate of 88.89% far exceeds both the district average of 66.58% and the state average of 72.39%. Science proficiency is equally impressive at 84.78%, the highest among all nearby schools, including Martin Luther King Junior Elementary and Laurel Hill Elementary. Reading also stays above state averages in every grade from 3rd through 6th, with the only relative soft spot being 6th grade reading, which trails the district average but still beats the state.

Gunston compares favorably to its closest neighbors. It outperforms Saratoga Elementary, Halley Elementary, and Lorton Station Elementary in key subjects, even though those schools serve similar or more affluent populations. English Learner students rank at the 90th percentile statewide, a strong signal given that nearly 40% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch. Chronic absenteeism has also improved from 18.6% to 12.7% over two years, now below the state average. With per-student spending in line with peer schools and class sizes that are neither unusually small nor large, Gunston's strong results appear to come from effective instruction rather than extra resources.

530
Students ?
13.8
Student/teacher ratio ?
$14,435
Per pupil spending ?
39.4%
Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?
 10100 Gunston Rd
       Lorton, VA  22079

(703) 541-3600

District: Fairfax County Public Schools


Students who attend Gunston Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    South County Middle
High:    South County High
Racial breakdown:

White:
29.6%
African American:
28.7%
Hispanic:
19.1%
more
 See top rated Virginia elementary schools

 Compare Gunston Elementary to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 33rd percentile in 2016 → 73rd in 2026
Strengths
✓Test scores above the Virginia average (81% vs 71% meeting standards)
✓Ranking is trending up — up 40 percentile points since 2016
✓Above the Virginia median (73rd percentile)
Worth a look
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school81%
District avg76%
Virginia avg71%
300th of 1,111
Virginia public elementary schools ?
Top 27%▲ up 40 pts since 2016
From bottom 33% (2016) to top 27% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Virginia Elementary Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
59th of 137Elementary Schools in the Fairfax County Public Schools
39th of 131Fairfax County Public Schools among Virginia districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202673.3300 of 111173.0%★★★★☆
202565.6408 of 111063.2%★★★☆☆
202471.3330 of 111470.4%★★★★☆
202374.9270 of 111475.8%★★★★☆
202273.5293 of 110973.6%★★★★☆
202154.0545 of 110350.6%★★★☆☆
201962.6462 of 110558.2%★★★☆☆
201846.5686 of 109737.5%★★☆☆☆
201752.1593 of 109946.0%★★☆☆☆
201642.1738 of 109632.7%★★☆☆☆
201536.0811 of 110026.3%★☆☆☆☆
201430.0887 of 111020.1%★☆☆☆☆
201333.1843 of 112024.7%★☆☆☆☆
201240.1784 of 111729.8%★★☆☆☆
201143.5740 of 111733.8%★★☆☆☆
201043.8768 of 111331.0%★★☆☆☆
200946.1682 of 108237.0%★★☆☆☆
200846.4684 of 108136.7%★★☆☆☆
200729.0915 of 108315.5%★☆☆☆☆
200650.4599 of 107144.1%★★☆☆☆
200527.8893 of 106215.9%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202666.7177 of 59170.1%★★★★☆
202564.1190 of 57967.2%★★★☆☆
202465.3197 of 58866.5%★★★☆☆
202381.871 of 57987.7%★★★★☆

Asian

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202673.049 of 24680.1%★★★★☆
202549.1148 of 24940.6%★★☆☆☆
202449.7140 of 23841.2%★★☆☆☆
202373.055 of 23076.1%★★★★☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202663.2144 of 42065.7%★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202684.931 of 31590.2%★★★★★
202583.536 of 32689.0%★★★★☆
202487.221 of 30693.1%★★★★★
202386.028 of 30090.7%★★★★★

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202677.9213 of 110080.6%★★★★☆
202565.9379 of 109665.4%★★★☆☆
202478.4208 of 109881.1%★★★★☆
202377.7219 of 110080.1%★★★★☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202672.1142 of 61977.1%★★★★☆
202572.0149 of 60675.4%★★★★☆
202476.7109 of 58081.2%★★★★☆
202380.081 of 56485.6%★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202661.5376 of 104063.8%★★★☆☆
202554.6495 of 104652.7%★★★☆☆
202459.7419 of 103659.6%★★★☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202666.1373 of 109966.1%★★★☆☆
202563.8415 of 109362.0%★★★☆☆
202462.4438 of 110160.2%★★★☆☆
202369.3329 of 109369.9%★★★★☆

Military Connected

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202653.7106 of 20648.5%★★☆☆☆
202579.521 of 19289.1%★★★★☆
202476.727 of 19586.2%★★★★☆
202354.8100 of 18245.1%★★☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankVirginia percentileRating
202682.191 of 97490.7%★★★★★
202565.4348 of 97364.2%★★★☆☆
202472.9222 of 97977.3%★★★★☆
202357.5447 of 98454.6%★★★☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
White (2026)91st percentile+18 vs school
English Language Learner (2026)90th percentile+17 vs school
Female (2026)81st percentile+8 vs school
Asian (2026)80th percentile+7 vs school
Hispanic (2026)77th percentile+4 vs school
African American (2026)70th percentile-3 vs school
Male (2026)66th percentile-7 vs school
Disabled (2026)66th percentile-7 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)64th percentile-9 vs school
Military Connected (2026)49th percentile-24 vs school
By subject vs Virginia (2025-2026) ?
Science85%+16 vs state
Mathematics83%+12 vs state
English Reading79%+7 vs state

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What people are saying
by a parent
Sunday, October 5, 2014

Open Quote Gunston elementary school has been molding my daughter to becoming very brilliant more and more!our neighbors in private schools don't do better than my daughter , me and my daughter have brilliant conversations and she shares a lot of educative informations about her school,
Gunston elementary school staff and teachers are doing a great job, Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Gunston Elementary

Students at Gunston Elementary are 30% White, 29% African American, 19% Hispanic, 15% Asian, 8% Two or more races.

In the 2024-25 school year, 530 students attended Gunston Elementary.

Students who attend Gunston Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : South County Middle
High : South County High

Gunston Elementary ranks 300th of 1111 Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

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Latest Virginia data All new data »
2023–24 school spending data (updated)NewNov 2, 2026
2024–25 school spending dataOct 12, 2026
2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesOct 12, 2026
2025–26 SOL test scoresAug 25, 2026


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.

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