Schools in Zip Code 23831

ZIP code 23831 (Chester, VA) is served by 7 schools across elementary, middle, and high school levels, all part of Chesterfield County Public Schools, a district ranked 73rd out of 131 in Virginia. The area is uniformly high-poverty: every school reports free/reduced-price lunch eligibility between 74% and 77%, yet outcomes vary dramatically across the seven schools. The standout traditional high school is Thomas Dale High, which ranks in the 37th percentile and graduates 91.6% of its students, well above the district average. Among elementary schools, C.C. Wells Elementary holds the top ranking (42nd percentile) and posts the lowest chronic absenteeism rate in the ZIP code at 13.5%.

The weakest results are concentrated in Harrowgate Elementary and Carver College and Career Academy. Harrowgate has fallen from the 25th to the 9th percentile over two years, with reading and math proficiency 15–25 points below state averages. Carver Academy ranks in the 2nd percentile among Virginia high schools, with a 25.1% graduation rate and 38.9% dropout rate—despite spending $20,496 per student and having the lowest student-teacher ratio (6.5:1) in the area. Meanwhile, Carver Middle ranks low overall (7th percentile) but shines in accelerated math: 100% proficiency in 7th-grade Algebra I and 8th-grade Geometry.

Chronic absenteeism is a clearest warning sign: the three lowest-performing schools have the highest absenteeism, from Carver Middle’s 28.3% to Carver Academy’s 57.8%. More spending and smaller classes do not guarantee better results, as Thomas Dale High achieves strong outcomes with modest per-pupil spending ($7,999) and a 13.5:1 ratio. Elementary bright spots like C.E. Curtis Elementary (80.7% 5th-grade math) and Ecoff Elementary (79.3% 5th-grade reading) show that high proficiency is achievable. Overall, families in 23831 have a solid anchor in Thomas Dale High, a strong elementary option in C.C. Wells, and an advanced math pathway at Carver Middle—but attendance and middle-grade math need urgent attention.