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T. Ryland Sanford Elementary

Q: Is T. Ryland Sanford Elementary a good school?

T. Ryland Sanford Elementary ranks 818 th of 1110 Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

818^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,110 Virginia Elementary Schools

Better than 26% of Virginia elementary schools

Summary

T. Ryland Sanford Elementary is a public elementary school in Newport News, Virginia, serving 454 students from pre-kindergarten to 5th grade. The school is part of the Newport News City Public Schools district, which is ranked 111 out of 129 school districts in Virginia and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

T. Ryland Sanford Elementary faces significant challenges, with consistently high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 19.3% to 23.4% in recent years, well above the state and district averages. The school also generally performs below the state and district averages on standardized tests, such as the SOL (Standards of Learning) assessments. However, the school's student subgroups, including African American, Hispanic, and Multi-racial students, tend to perform better relative to their peers in the state, though still lagging behind the overall state averages.

Comparing T. Ryland Sanford Elementary to nearby schools in the same district, the nearby schools generally perform better on standardized tests and have lower chronic absenteeism rates. However, the nearby schools also have similar high percentages of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the economic challenges faced by T. Ryland Sanford Elementary are not unique to the school. The district may need to allocate additional resources and support to schools like T. Ryland Sanford Elementary to help close the achievement gap and provide equitable educational opportunities for all students.

498

Students ?

18.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,561

Per pupil spending ?

99%

Free/discounted lunch ?

480 Colony Road
Newport News, VA 23602

(757) 886-7778

District: Newport News City Public Schools

Students who attend T. Ryland Sanford Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Mary Passage Middle
High:	Denbigh High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

42.0%

White:

23.7%

Hispanic:

18.9%

See top rated Virginia elementary schools

Compare T. Ryland Sanford Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 29th percentile in 2015 → 26th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Virginia average (62% vs 71% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (22% vs 15% Virginia)

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school62%

District avg58%

Virginia avg71%

818^th of 1,110

Virginia public elementary schools ?

Bottom 26%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Virginia Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

10^th of 24Elementary Schools in the Newport News City Public Schools

111^th of 129Newport News City 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
2025	30.8	818 of 1110	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.5	915 of 1114	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.6	891 of 1114	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.4	974 of 1109	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.8	933 of 1103	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.4	959 of 1105	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.0	952 of 1097	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	27.2	919 of 1099	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	23.9	936 of 1096	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	39.4	778 of 1100	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	24.0	967 of 1110	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	20.5	996 of 1120	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	20.3	1024 of 1117	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	30.5	934 of 1117	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	35.1	896 of 1113	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	27.5	944 of 1082	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	41.2	751 of 1081	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2007	43.0	708 of 1083	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2006	32.7	864 of 1071	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	75.9	183 of 1062	82.8%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	42.3	372 of 579	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	31.6	456 of 588	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.2	471 of 579	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	32.5	793 of 1096	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.9	880 of 1098	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.9	845 of 1100	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	62.1	236 of 606	61.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.6	239 of 564	57.6%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	40.2	678 of 1046	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.8	743 of 1036	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	29.6	829 of 1093	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.1	921 of 1101	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.3	915 of 1093	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	12.9	255 of 271	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	37.3	166 of 247	32.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	25.2	212 of 245	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Virginia percentile	Rating
2025	32.5	740 of 973	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.5	820 of 979	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.3	823 of 984	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Hispanic (2025)61st percentile+35 vs school

African American (2025)36th percentile+9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)35th percentile+9 vs school

Female (2025)28th percentile~ school

Male (2025)24th percentile~ school

White (2025)24th percentile~ school

Multi-racial (2025)6th percentile-20 vs school

By subject vs Virginia (2024-2025) ?

English Reading65%-6 vs state

VA Studies62%-6 vs state

Mathematics62%-11 vs state

Science54%-15 vs state

5.0

3 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★3

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Sunday, April 14, 2019

Absolutely LOVE the school, the environment, the staff, and the teaching staff is one of a kind ❤️ Close Quote

by a student
Tuesday, March 28, 2017

before I moved to lee hall my life at Sanford was PERFECT...I loved my expirience Close Quote

by a parent
Wednesday, May 18, 2016

We have been very happy with the office staff and teachers at Sanford. They helped us transition into the school in the middle of the year. The principle (Lieberman) knows all the kids by name; they all respond very well to him in the halls. He has their respect. He keeps a very encouraging and positive attitude. The teachers we have in first and second grade are great teachers, obviously enjoy what they are doing and really investing into our kids. Our kids are excited about school every day; they love the music and arts and PE class as well. We are all sad to be moving away from this school. Close Quote

Schools Near T. Ryland Sanford Elementary

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				SOL Mathematics (2025)			SOL Science (2025)	SOL English Reading (2025)			SOL VA Studies (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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
T. Ryland Sanford Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	480 Colony Road	Newport News	23602	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(757) 886-7778	498	27	18.4	99.0%	118 (23.7%)	209 (42.0%)	94 (18.9%)	18 (3.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	56 (11.2%)	30.8	818^th of 1110 public elementary schools	26.3%		23.5	915^th of 1114 public elementary schools	17.9%	97	65.4	65.9	52.2	53.6	64.2	67.9	60.9	62.4	$9,561	$749	$8,812
Willis A. Jenkins Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	80 Menchville Road	Newport News	23602	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(757) 881-5400	507	27	18.7	100.0%	88 (17.4%)	274 (54.0%)	97 (19.1%)	12 (2.4%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	33 (6.5%)	12.3	1005^th of 1110 public elementary schools	9.5%		24.4	908^th of 1114 public elementary schools	18.5%	97	59.1	44.2	53.9	57.3	44.3	54.6	48.3	41.6	$9,502	$651	$8,851
B.C. Charles Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	701 Menchville Road	Newport News	23602	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(757) 886-7750	388	19	20.4	99.7%	141 (36.3%)	158 (40.7%)	44 (11.3%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	39 (10.1%)	35.1	770^th of 1110 public elementary schools	30.6%		27.4	872^nd of 1114 public elementary schools	21.7%	102	66.7	65.7	56.8	60.8	62.3	65.7	70.3	64.3	$10,075	$314	$9,761
Stoney Run Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	855 Lucas Creek Rd	Newport News	23608	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(757) 886-7755	453	26	17.4	99.6%	75 (16.6%)	221 (48.8%)	114 (25.2%)	9 (2.0%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	31 (6.8%)	9.6	1028^th of 1110 public elementary schools	7.4%		6	1069^th of 1114 public elementary schools	4.0%	41	45.2	44.3	48.0	58.9	37.7	48.6	56.2	38.6	$10,639	$1,498	$9,141
Knollwood Meadows Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	826 Moyer Rd	Newport News	23608	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(757) 886-7783	460	23	20.0	99.6%	147 (32.0%)	161 (35.0%)	76 (16.5%)	16 (3.5%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	57 (12.4%)	35.5	764^th of 1110 public elementary schools	31.2%		52	585^th of 1114 public elementary schools	47.5%	179	52.6	57.1	79.7	79.7	50.0	55.4	82.8	40.0	$10,077	$661	$9,415
David A. Dutrow Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	60 Curtis Tignor Rd	Newport News	23608	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(757) 886-7760	341	20	17.0	99.7%	55 (16.1%)	169 (49.6%)	64 (18.8%)	5 (1.5%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	44 (12.9%)	33.3	797^th of 1110 public elementary schools	28.2%		34.2	788^th of 1114 public elementary schools	29.3%	9	73.6	61.8	60.9	67.2	62.3	65.5	59.4	54.6	$8,935	$183	$8,752
George J. McIntosh Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	185 Richneck Rd	Newport News	23608	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(757) 886-7767	446	25	17.8	100.7%	49 (11.0%)	236 (52.9%)	114 (25.6%)	6 (1.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (9.0%)	14	988^th of 1110 public elementary schools	11.0%		7.6	1051^st of 1114 public elementary schools	5.7%	63	52.2	34.7	60.8	60.8	39.7	42.4	60.3	43.8	$12,275	$1,538	$10,737
Richard T. Yates Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	73 Maxwell Ln	Newport News	23606	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(757) 881-5450	448	20	22.4	97.8%	178 (39.7%)	170 (37.9%)	43 (9.6%)	9 (2.0%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (9.6%)	33.6	790^th of 1110 public elementary schools	28.8%		36.1	772^nd of 1114 public elementary schools	30.7%	18	56.0	70.6	57.8	60.2	59.0	72.1	63.9	70.6	$9,446	$562	$8,884
L.F. Palmer Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	100 Palmer Lane	Newport News	23602	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(757) 881-5000	465	26	17.8	98.3%	31 (6.7%)	190 (40.9%)	202 (43.4%)	5 (1.1%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (7.3%)	22.4	897^th of 1110 public elementary schools	19.2%		16	969^th of 1114 public elementary schools	13.0%	72	58.8	58.7	60.2	61.4	53.9	55.2	61.5	54.2	$8,954	$152	$8,802
Kiln Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1501 Kiln Creek Pkwy	Newport News	23602	Newport News city	Newport News City Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(757) 886-7961	553	26	21.2	102.7%	90 (16.3%)	308 (55.7%)	89 (16.1%)	13 (2.4%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	50 (9.0%)	38.3	736^th of 1110 public elementary schools	33.7%		28.7	858^th of 1114 public elementary schools	23.0%	122	67.0	57.5	67.4	70.8	61.7	65.3	71.9	56.9	$10,588	$1,047	$9,541

Frequently Asked Questions about T. Ryland Sanford Elementary

Is T. Ryland Sanford Elementary a good school?

T. Ryland Sanford Elementary ranks 818^th of 1110 Virginia elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of T. Ryland Sanford Elementary?

Students at T. Ryland Sanford Elementary are 42% African American, 24% White, 19% Hispanic, 11% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

What district is T. Ryland Sanford Elementary in?

Newport News City Public Schools

What schools do graduates of T. Ryland Sanford Elementary attend?

Students who attend T. Ryland Sanford Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Mary Passage Middle
High : Denbigh High

How many students attend T. Ryland Sanford Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 498 students attended T. Ryland Sanford Elementary.

Rate T. Ryland Sanford Elementary!

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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.