Summary:
Zip code 24153, encompassing Salem, Virginia, is home to two public high schools serving grades 9–12: Salem High (1,202 students) and Glenvar High (620 students), which belong to Salem City Public Schools and Roanoke County Public Schools, respectively.
Both schools are strong performers, ranking nearly identically statewide in 2025–2026 (Salem at 81st, Glenvar at 85th out of 331), yet they excel in different ways. Glenvar leads on student outcomes: its 98.7% graduation rate far exceeds Salem’s 93.4% and the state’s 92.3%, while its dropout rate is just 1.2% versus Salem’s 4.3% and the state’s 5.0%. Glenvar also posts lower chronic absenteeism (11.2% vs. Salem’s 13.7%) and outpaces Salem in science, with 80.5% proficiency in Biology and strong scores in Earth Science and World History. Salem, however, shines in mathematics—achieving 100% proficiency in Algebra II, 95.5% in Geometry, and 94.4% in Algebra I for 10th graders—and maintains a remarkably low student-teacher ratio of 9:1 compared to Glenvar’s 16:1, despite spending less per pupil ($9,987 vs. $11,390).
Economically, both schools serve similar populations, with free/reduced lunch eligibility at 40.35% for Salem and 35.81% for Glenvar, making Glenvar’s superior graduation and attendance metrics especially notable. Both schools improved sharply from 2023–2024 to 2024–2025 in statewide rankings, then held steady, suggesting genuine gains or assessment changes. Families have two distinct but high-quality options: Salem offers small classes and advanced math strength, while Glenvar provides exceptional graduation rates, low dropout, and consistent subject performance across the board. Overall, zip code 24153 presents two above-average public high schools in a single small city, each with its own comparative advantages.
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