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Upshur County Schools

At a glance

32^ndof 55 West Virginia districts▲ 11

Better than 41% of West Virginia districts

Elementary 7 Middle 1 High 2Grades PK, KG-12

102 Smithfield St
Buckhannon, WV 26201-2620·(304) 472-5480·All West Virginia district rankings →

Statewide performance 2018–2026

2026: better than 41.8% of districts

Schools

3,385

Students

Top rankedRock Cave Elementary113^th of 355 West Virginia elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Union Elementary School up 100 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Rock Cave Elementary 11.5 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

3★

2★

1★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

Compare West Virginia districts →See the top-ranked West Virginia schools →

Summary:

Upshur County Schools in West Virginia serves approximately 3,385 students across 9 schools—7 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and 1 high school—in the Buckhannon area, earning a 2-star district rating that ranks 31st out of 54 districts statewide.

For parents, the standout story is Rock Cave Elementary, the district's smallest school at just 112 students, which leads all elementary schools with 70.6% math proficiency—nearly double the district average of 36.3%—and boasts an extraordinary 90% proficiency rate in 4th grade math. It also has the best student-teacher ratio (11.5:1) and highest per-student spending ($12,597), and it jumped from a 0-star rating to a 3-star rating in just two years. French Creek Elementary (57.3% math, 54.4% ELA) and Buckhannon Academy Elementary (52.5% math, 54.2% ELA) also perform well above state averages, both earning 3-star ratings. At the other end, Hodgesville Elementary struggles significantly with just 23.3% math proficiency and a 1-star rating, while Buckhannon Upshur High School shows alarming 11th grade math proficiency of only 11.4% (state: 20.6%), though its 92.3% graduation rate is near the state average.

A clear pattern emerges: smaller schools outperform larger ones. The top three elementary schools all have enrollments under 205 students, while larger schools like Tennerton Elementary (289 students) and Buckhannon Academy (487 students) generally lag behind. The district also faces a "proficiency cliff" where math scores drop from 36.3% in elementary grades to just 11.4% by 11th grade, and science proficiency is consistently low across all levels—even Rock Cave's 5th grade science is only 16.7%. However, the trajectory is encouraging: Union Elementary jumped from the 13th to 41st percentile, Washington District Elementary improved from the 21st to 45th percentile, and B-U Middle School shows 7th grade math exceeding state averages. The key question is whether Rock Cave's successful strategies can be replicated district-wide, especially at the secondary level where gaps are most severe.

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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)				WV Assessment Mathematics (2026)								WV Assessment English Language Arts (2026)								WV Assessment Science (2026)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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 (2021)	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	WV Assessment Mathematics 3rd Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 4th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 5th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 6th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 7th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 8th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics 11th Grade	WV Assessment Mathematics All Grades	WV Assessment English Language Arts 3rd Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 4th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 5th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 6th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 7th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 8th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts 11th Grade	WV Assessment English Language Arts All Grades	WV Assessment Science 5th Grade	WV Assessment Science 8th Grade	WV Assessment Science 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
B-U Middle School	Public	6-8	553 Route 20 South Rd	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-1520	718	48	15.0	51.2%	694 (96.7%)	4 (0.6%)	10 (1.4%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.1%)	40.6	102^nd of 161 public middle schools	36.6%		40	100^th of 168 public middle schools	40.5%	2				29.2	39.5	29.4		32.7				39.1	47.4	31.4		39.2		26.5		$7,335	$713	$6,622
Buckhannon Upshur High School	Public	9-12	270 Bu Dr	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-3720	1,068	63	16.8	49.3%	1,021 (95.6%)	6 (0.6%)	21 (2.0%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (1.4%)	25	75^th of 107 public high schools	29.9%		18.4	95^th of 111 public high schools	14.4%	20							11.4								41.1				17.4	$7,224	$516	$6,707
French Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	7619 Route 20 South Rd	French Creek	26218	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 924-6381	205	17	12.0	48.5%	203 (99.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	60.8	118^th of 355 public elementary schools	66.8%		54.8	153^rd of 355 public elementary schools	56.9%	35	59.4	65.9	43.3					57.3	46.9	65.9	46.7					54.4	36.7			$11,283	$903	$10,379
Hodgesville Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	918 Teter Rd	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-3212	151	10	15.6	67.1%	150 (99.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	19.6	318^th of 355 public elementary schools	10.4%		9.9	343^rd of 355 public elementary schools	3.4%	25	33.3	12.5	21.7					23.3	42.9	25.0	47.8					40.0	26.1			$9,174	$541	$8,632
Rock Cave Elementary	Public	K-5	12292 Route 20 South Rd	Rock Cave	26234	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 924-6969	112	10	11.5	63.1%	108 (96.4%)	2 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	62.3	113^th of 355 public elementary schools	68.2%		46.9	185^th of 355 public elementary schools	47.9%	72	75.0	90.0	50.0					70.6	58.3	70.0	25.0					50.0	16.7			$14,739	$2,106	$12,633
Tennerton Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	167 Gawthrop Rd	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-1278	289	16	18.2	48.9%	283 (97.9%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	36.4	245^th of 355 public elementary schools	31.0%		55.7	147^th of 355 public elementary schools	58.6%	98	41.0	42.6	46.3					43.3	30.8	42.6	46.3					40.2	39.0			$7,511	$614	$6,897
Washington District Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	5078 Tallmansville Rd	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-6599	113	9	12.5	50.0%	112 (99.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	45.2	196^th of 355 public elementary schools	44.8%		29.3	279^th of 355 public elementary schools	21.4%	83	35.7	52.9	47.1					45.8	35.7	52.9	41.2					43.8	47.1			$11,796	$1,043	$10,753
Fred W Eberle Technical Center	Public	9-12	208 Morton Ave	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	No	(304) 472-1259	0	14	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Union Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	481 Heavner Grove Rd	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-1394	242	17	14.2	52.3%	240 (99.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	43.2	210^th of 355 public elementary schools	40.8%		23.1	310^th of 355 public elementary schools	12.7%	100	47.1	52.0	38.5					44.9	32.4	53.9	51.3					45.5	34.2			$9,920	$501	$9,419
Buckhannon Academy Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	16 College Ave	Buckhannon	26201	Upshur County	Upshur County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(304) 472-3310	487	34	14.3	67.9%	460 (94.5%)	6 (1.2%)	7 (1.4%)	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.6%)	59.4	126^th of 355 public elementary schools	64.5%		48.5	177^th of 355 public elementary schools	50.1%	51	54.4	59.5	41.7					52.5	50.0	57.3	55.0					54.2	38.3			$9,970	$749	$9,222

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Lewis County Schools	10.57 mi	6	48^th
Barbour County Schools	14.76 mi	9	53^rd
Randolph County Schools	15.05 mi	15	51^st
Harrison County Schools	17.13 mi	23	17^th
WV Schools of Diversion & Transition	20.23 mi	26

See the top WV West Virginia districts

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the West 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.