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Dryden Elementary

Q: Is Dryden Elementary a good school?

Dryden Elementary ranks 759 th of 1111 Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

759^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,111 Virginia Elementary Schools

Better than 32% of Virginia elementary schools

Summary

Dryden Elementary is a small rural school in Dryden, Virginia, serving 237 students in grades PK-5 as part of Lee County Public Schools. The school has a 2-star rating and ranks in the 32nd percentile statewide, down from the 62nd percentile just a few years ago. About 86% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the school serves economically disadvantaged students relatively well—ranking in the 60th percentile for that subgroup—even as its overall rank has slipped.

Academically, Dryden’s strongest subject is reading: 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade reading scores are all near or above state averages and above the district average. Math is a different story, especially in upper grades. 4th grade math proficiency is 62% (versus 73% statewide), and 5th grade math is 60% (versus 72% statewide)—both well below nearby St. Charles Elementary and Flatwoods Elementary. The most striking decline is in 4th grade social studies (VA Studies), which fell from 85% proficiency in 2023-2024 to just 50% in 2025-2026, while district and state scores stayed stable. By comparison, St. Charles reached 100% and Union Primary scored 93.5%.

There are bright spots beyond reading. Dryden’s chronic absenteeism rate dropped to just 5.6% in 2024-2025, far better than the state average and much improved from earlier volatile years. The student-teacher ratio is also favorable at 11.2, lower than most nearby schools. However, the school’s White student subgroup ranks in the 7th percentile statewide, while the low-income subgroup performs well—a pattern that suggests targeted support may be needed for specific groups. With St. Charles only 6.65 miles away and serving a similar poverty rate while outperforming Dryden in nearly every subject, there are clear local examples of success that Dryden can learn from.

237

Students ?

11.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,610

Per pupil spending ?

86.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

176 School House Ridge Road
Dryden, VA 24243

(276) 546-4443

District: Lee County Public Schools

Students who attend Dryden Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Elydale Middle
	Jonesville Middle
	Pennington Middle
High:	Lee High
	Thomas Walker High

Racial breakdown:

White:

97.9%

Hispanic:

1.3%

Two or more races:

0.8%

See top rated Virginia elementary schools

Compare Dryden Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 40th percentile in 2016 → 32nd in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Virginia average (65% vs 72% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 8 percentile points since 2016

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school65%

District avg67%

Virginia avg72%

759^th of 1,111

Virginia public elementary schools ?

Bottom 32%▼ down 8 pts since 2016

From bottom 40% (2016) to bottom 32% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Virginia Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 5Elementary Schools in the Lee County Public Schools

63^rd of 131Lee 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	37.7	759 of 1111	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	44.5	671 of 1110	39.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	52.6	581 of 1114	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	55.7	541 of 1114	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.6	424 of 1109	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	39.0	723 of 1103	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	57.1	528 of 1105	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	68.2	339 of 1097	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2017	61.3	435 of 1099	60.4%	★★★☆☆
2016	47.5	663 of 1096	39.5%	★★☆☆☆
2015	42.5	740 of 1100	32.7%	★★☆☆☆
2014	22.0	987 of 1110	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	20.4	999 of 1120	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	24.1	984 of 1117	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	9.3	1090 of 1117	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	34.4	908 of 1113	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	46.8	666 of 1082	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2008	23.4	970 of 1081	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	64.0	388 of 1083	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2006	55.0	519 of 1071	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2005	69.6	279 of 1062	73.7%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	56.8	201 of 420	52.1%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	34.8	786 of 1100	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	52.7	553 of 1096	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	57.9	501 of 1098	54.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	55.0	530 of 1100	51.8%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	59.0	421 of 1040	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	65.6	317 of 1046	69.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	82.0	95 of 1036	90.8%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	46.1	657 of 1099	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	54.7	519 of 1093	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	48.2	620 of 1101	43.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	51.9	565 of 1093	48.3%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2026	15.5	909 of 974	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	21.2	843 of 973	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.2	753 of 979	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	33.1	743 of 984	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)60th percentile+28 vs school

Disabled (2026)52nd percentile+20 vs school

Male (2026)40th percentile+9 vs school

Female (2026)29th percentile-3 vs school

White (2026)7th percentile-25 vs school

By subject vs Virginia (2025-2026) ?

English Reading73%~ state avg

Mathematics66%-8 vs state

Science54%-15 vs state

VA Studies50%-21 vs state

★

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Schools Near Dryden Elementary

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SOL Mathematics (2026)			SOL Science (2026)	SOL English Reading (2026)			SOL VA Studies (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SOL Mathematics 3rd Grade	SOL Mathematics 4th Grade	SOL Mathematics 5th Grade	SOL Science 5th Grade	SOL English Reading 3rd Grade	SOL English Reading 4th Grade	SOL English Reading 5th Grade	SOL VA Studies 4th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Dryden Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	176 School House Ridge Road	Dryden	24243	Lee County	Lee County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 546-4443	237	21	11.2	86.1%	232 (97.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	37.7	759^th of 1111 public elementary schools	31.7%		44.5	671^st of 1110 public elementary schools	39.5%	88	74.4	62.2	59.5	53.7	74.4	73.0	71.4	50.0	$9,610	$1,316	$8,293
Elk Knob Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	148 Hornet Loop	Pennington Gap	24277	Lee County	Lee County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 546-1837	291	24	12.2	87.6%	281 (96.6%)	2 (0.7%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.4%)	36.6	769^th of 1111 public elementary schools	30.8%		46.5	649^th of 1110 public elementary schools	41.5%	120	77.8	66.7	68.9	40.0	84.4	58.8	62.2	59.6	$9,441	$1,568	$7,873
St. Charles Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2434 St. Charles Road	Saint Charles	24282	Lee County	Lee County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 383-4531	110	12	9.5	82.7%	106 (96.4%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.8%)	65.4	407^th of 1111 public elementary schools	63.4%		78.5	239^th of 1110 public elementary schools	78.5%	168	76.9	85.7	77.3	59.1		92.9	77.3	100.0	$13,624	$2,592	$11,032
Duffield-Pattonsville Primary	Public	PK, KG-4	663 Duffield-Pattonsville High	Duffield	24244	Scott County	Scott County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 431-2244	308	21	14.8	70.1%	286 (92.9%)	1 (0.3%)	11 (3.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.2%)	56.5	533^rd of 1111 public elementary schools	52.0%		73.2	306^th of 1110 public elementary schools	72.4%	227	58.3	79.6			66.7	86.4		81.8	$8,410	$1,357	$7,053
Union Primary	Public	PK, KG-4	2945 Second Avenue East	Big Stone Gap	24219	Wise County	Wise County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 523-4900	809	61	13.2	90.1%	721 (89.1%)	29 (3.6%)	11 (1.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (5.8%)	89.7	49^th of 1111 public elementary schools	95.6%		86.7	92^nd of 1110 public elementary schools	91.7%	43	91.7	94.3			83.5	92.7		93.5	$8,340	$916	$7,424
Flatwoods Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	205 Flatwoods School Road	Jonesville	24263	Lee County	Lee County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(276) 346-2799	336	24	14.0	84.2%	328 (97.6%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.2%)	40.6	729^th of 1111 public elementary schools	34.4%		50.4	594^th of 1110 public elementary schools	46.5%	135	66.0	72.4	71.7	43.3	63.5	72.4	65.0	79.3	$9,644	$1,347	$8,297

Frequently Asked Questions about Dryden Elementary

What schools do graduates of Dryden Elementary attend?

Students who attend Dryden Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Elydale Middle
Middle : Jonesville Middle
Middle : Pennington Middle
High : Lee High
High : Thomas Walker High

What is the racial makeup of Dryden Elementary?

Students at Dryden Elementary are 98% White, 1% Hispanic.

How many students attend Dryden Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 237 students attended Dryden Elementary.

Is Dryden Elementary a good school?

Dryden Elementary ranks 759^th of 1111 Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Dryden Elementary in?

Lee County Public Schools

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VAVirginia District Rankings

Schools in Dryden, VA

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Latest Virginia data All new data »

2025–26 SOL test scoresNewAug 25, 2026

2021–22 school spending dataFeb 16, 2026

2022–23 through 2023–24 school spending dataFeb 10, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 6, 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.