South Topsail Elementary

Summary:

South Topsail Elementary is a public elementary school in Hampstead, North Carolina, serving 557 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the Pender County Schools district, which is ranked 124 out of 242 districts in the state.

South Topsail Elementary consistently ranks among the top 15-20% of elementary schools in North Carolina, with a statewide ranking between 141-203 out of over 1,500 schools. The school has maintained a 4 or 5-star rating from SchoolDigger for the past several years, indicating strong academic performance. In the 2023-2024 school year, South Topsail Elementary's proficiency rates in Math, Reading, and Science were significantly higher than the Pender County and North Carolina state averages across all grade levels. The school has a predominantly white student population, with over 79% of students identifying as white, and a relatively low percentage of economically disadvantaged students at 34.29%.

South Topsail Elementary outperforms its neighboring schools, Surf City Elementary and North Topsail Elementary, in academic proficiency across all subject areas and grade levels. However, the school lags behind the highly-ranked Topsail Annandale Elementary School, which is located just 2.17 miles away and consistently ranks among the top 5% of elementary schools in North Carolina. South Topsail Elementary's Hispanic and Special Education students perform exceptionally well, ranking among the top 10-15% of their respective subgroups in the state, and the school's Gifted and Talented students also demonstrate strong performance, ranking in the top 15% of North Carolina elementary schools in this category.


Detail:

Public PK, KG-5

 997 Hoover Road
       Hampstead, NC  28443


(910) 270-2756

District: Pender County Schools

SchoolDigger Rank:
187th of 1,505 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $10,357 Help


Students who attend South Topsail Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Topsail Middle
High:    Pender Early College High
    Topsail High

Student/teacher ratio:  15.6 Help
Number of students:  557

Racial breakdown:

White:
79.7%
Hispanic:
9.0%
Two or more races:
6.5%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  34.3% Help


 See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

 Compare South Topsail Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details South Topsail Elementary ranks better than 87.6% of elementary schools in North Carolina. It also ranks 3rd among 9 ranked elementary schools in the Pender County Schools District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 84.05. (See more...)
Student Body
Help
Compare Details Racial makeup is: White (79.7%), Hispanic (9%), two or more races (6.5%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 34.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at South Topsail Elementary is 15.6. 7 elementary schools in the Pender County Schools District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)
Help
Compare South Topsail Elementary employs 35.5 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at South Topsail Elementary is $10,357, which is the 3rd highest among 9 elementary schools in the Pender County Schools District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

South Topsail Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks South Topsail Elementary 187th of 1505 North Carolina public elementary schools. (See South Topsail Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Gifted and Talented students:
Male students:
White students:


Pender County Schools:

SchoolDigger ranks Pender County Schools 124th of 242 North Carolina school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Your rating for South Topsail Elementary?

Rank History for South Topsail Elementary

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Compare

Rank History for all students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2006 77.42 209th 1276 83.6%
2007 86.28 74th 1293 94.3%
2008 87.64 95th 1324 92.8%
2009 86.28 106th 1354 92.2%
2010 86.50 99th 1363 92.7%
2011 83.78 141st 1381 89.8%
2012 73.69 328th 1388 76.4%
2013 66.44 418th 1403 70.2%
2014 74.16 323rd 1390 76.8%
2015 81.07 222nd 1440 84.6%
2016 73.53 338th 1425 76.3%
2017 79.31 239th 1429 83.3%
2018 76.01 295th 1434 79.4%
2019 83.45 187th 1473 87.3%
2021 83.72 203rd 1489 86.4%
2022 84.23 191st 1514 87.4%
2023 87.34 141st 1502 90.6%
2024 84.05 187th 1505 87.6%
See the entire list of North Carolina Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 71.71 118th 801 85.3%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 55.25 582nd 1332 56.3%
2019 84.50 102nd 1361 92.5%
2021 69.71 258th 1329 80.6%
2022 78.27 165th 1366 87.9%
2023 84.96 93rd 1437 93.5%
2024 77.61 193rd 1450 86.7%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 71.46 369th 1405 73.7%
2019 87.08 108th 1424 92.4%
2021 82.22 191st 1440 86.7%
2022 85.25 149th 1458 89.8%
2023 87.04 121st 1459 91.7%
2024 84.54 158th 1455 89.1%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 45.63 436th 897 51.4%
2022 49.40 255th 634 59.8%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Gifted and Talented students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 65.32 118th 612 80.7%
2021 77.01 22nd 494 95.5%
2022 70.21 14th 500 97.2%
2023 68.20 73rd 582 87.5%
2024 63.47 243rd 669 63.7%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Gifted and Talented Students!

Rank History for Male students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 77.84 248th 1413 82.4%
2019 75.90 275th 1430 80.8%
2021 78.78 254th 1444 82.4%
2022 80.98 215th 1464 85.3%
2023 85.04 150th 1461 89.7%
2024 79.81 232nd 1464 84.2%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 79.36 107th 843 87.3%
2022 80.16 97th 893 89.1%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at South Topsail Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 63.09 429th 1178 63.6%
2019 74.90 243rd 1183 79.5%
2021 69.65 316th 1172 73.0%
2022 71.43 306th 1194 74.4%
2023 76.41 230th 1183 80.6%
2024 71.13 312th 1166 73.2%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

South Topsail Elementary Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 





Data source: North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)
100%

0%

0%

0%

0%

  

Reviews:
Facebook Profile Picture by a parent on FaceBook
Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Open Quote Excellent School. Would recommend to anyone. Close Quote



Enrollment information for South Topsail Elementary

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 167 49 3 3 0 n/a n/a 1 223
1989 164 50 2 1 0 n/a n/a 0 217
1990 169 46 2 0 0 n/a n/a 0 217
1991 210 47 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 258
1992 230 51 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 281
1993 451 98 2 4 2 n/a n/a 12 569
1994 514 97 1 5 1 n/a n/a 10 628
1995 626 123 1 6 0 n/a n/a 0 756
1996 626 123 1 6 0 n/a n/a 0 756
1997 646 117 1 7 1 n/a n/a 0 772
1998 672 120 1 8 1 n/a n/a 0 802
1999 321 53 1 2 2 n/a n/a 0 379
2000 339 53 0 3 2 n/a n/a 0 397
2001 361 52 0 6 3 n/a n/a 0 422
2002 363 49 1 5 3 n/a n/a 0 421
2003 363 49 1 5 3 n/a n/a 0 421
2004 366 48 1 9 2 n/a n/a 0 426
2005 393 45 1 8 1 n/a n/a 0 448
2006 588 61 1 20 1 n/a n/a 0 671
2007 678 44 2 19 1 n/a n/a 14 758
2008 628 23 6 22 0 n/a n/a 10 689
2009 690 29 6 18 1 n/a n/a 0 744
2010 470 12 5 12 0 n/a n/a 0 499
2011 458 6 5 12 0 1 5 0 487
2012 456 11 7 20 2 2 5 0 503
2013 453 10 8 23 1 2 6 0 503
2014 523 10 10 26 3 1 8 0 581
2015 548 9 8 38 2 1 6 0 612
2016 563 10 10 44 5 1 10 0 643
2017 588 7 12 54 4 0 16 0 681
2018 522 3 5 49 3 0 24 0 606
2019 305 7 1 41 2 0 16 0 372
2020 306 11 2 37 2 0 23 0 381
2021 310 10 3 38 2 0 29 0 392
2022 384 14 5 53 1 0 29 0 486
2023 444 18 8 50 1 0 36 0 557

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at South Topsail Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 223 13.0 17.1 30.5
1989 217 13.0 16.6 100
1990 217 14.0 15.5 25.8
1991 258 15.0 17.2 25.6
1992 281 14.0 20.0 21.4
1993 569 29.0 19.6 16.5
1994 628 34.0 18.5 28
1995 756 41.0 18.4 25.4
1996 756 41.0 18.4 25.4
1997 772 42.0 18.4 29
1998 802 47.0 17.1 30.4
1999 379 48.0 7.9 30.6
2000 397 48.0 8.3 27
2001 422 29.0 14.6 27.3
2002 421 25.0 16.8 34.9
2003 421 25.0 16.8 34.9
2004 426 30.0 14.2 32.2
2005 448 30.0 14.9 38.4
2006 671 30.0 22.4 28.3
2007 758 n/a n/a 23.3
2008 689 40.7 16.9 25.3
2009 744 41.1 18.1 22.2
2010 499 30.2 16.5 24
2011 487 28.2 17.2 23.8
2012 503 27.1 18.5 29
2013 503 29.0 17.3 28.2
2014 581 31.7 18.2 26.2
2015 612 34.0 18.0 22.5
2016 643 35.0 18.3 23.3
2017 681 37.0 18.4 26.6
2018 606 36.0 16.8 18.2
2019 372 25.0 14.8 41.9
2020 381 25.0 15.2 24.9
2021 392 24.0 16.3 23.2
2022 486 32.0 15.1 24.1
2023 557 35.5 15.6 34.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio South Topsail Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 223 13.0 17.1 30.5
1989 217 13.0 16.6 100
1990 217 14.0 15.5 25.8
1991 258 15.0 17.2 25.6
1992 281 14.0 20.0 21.4
1993 569 29.0 19.6 16.5
1994 628 34.0 18.5 28
1995 756 41.0 18.4 25.4
1996 756 41.0 18.4 25.4
1997 772 42.0 18.4 29
1998 802 47.0 17.1 30.4
1999 379 48.0 7.9 30.6
2000 397 48.0 8.3 27
2001 422 29.0 14.6 27.3
2002 421 25.0 16.8 34.9
2003 421 25.0 16.8 34.9
2004 426 30.0 14.2 32.2
2005 448 30.0 14.9 38.4
2006 671 30.0 22.4 28.3
2007 758 n/a n/a 23.3
2008 689 40.7 16.9 25.3
2009 744 41.1 18.1 22.2
2010 499 30.2 16.5 24
2011 487 28.2 17.2 23.8
2012 503 27.1 18.5 29
2013 503 29.0 17.3 28.2
2014 581 31.7 18.2 26.2
2015 612 34.0 18.0 22.5
2016 643 35.0 18.3 23.3
2017 681 37.0 18.4 26.6
2018 606 36.0 16.8 18.2
2019 372 25.0 14.8 41.9
2020 381 25.0 15.2 24.9
2021 392 24.0 16.3 23.2
2022 486 32.0 15.1 24.1
2023 557 35.5 15.6 34.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for South Topsail Elementary

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $486 (4.7%) $9,871 (95.3%) $10,357

Data source: North Carolina Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on South Topsail Elementary

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 187th of 1473 Elementary schoolsRanks 141st of 1502 Elementary schools
 3.3%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Mathematics (South Topsail Elementary)71.274.7
 3.5%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Pender County Schools)69.965.3
 4.6%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)64.361.1
 3.2%
3rd Grade Reading (South Topsail Elementary)72.957.9
 15%
   3rd Grade Reading (Pender County Schools)58.747.7
 11%
   3rd Grade Reading (North Carolina)56.848
 8.8%
4th Grade Mathematics (South Topsail Elementary)67.584
 16.5%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Pender County Schools)62.269.9
 7.7%
   4th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
4th Grade Reading (South Topsail Elementary)7483
 9%
   4th Grade Reading (Pender County Schools)60.264.3
 4.1%
   4th Grade Reading (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
5th Grade Mathematics (South Topsail Elementary)79.280.7
 1.5%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Pender County Schools)68.464.5
 3.9%
   5th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)60.255.9
 4.3%
5th Grade Reading (South Topsail Elementary)79.272.3
 6.9%
   5th Grade Reading (Pender County Schools)62.253.7
 8.5%
   5th Grade Reading (North Carolina)54.648
 6.6%
5th Grade Science (South Topsail Elementary)89.681.9
 7.7%
   5th Grade Science (Pender County Schools)79.975.5
 4.4%
   5th Grade Science (North Carolina)72.665.3
 7.3%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students372557
 49.7%
African American718
 157.1%
American Indian21
 50%
Asian18
 700%
Hispanic4150
 22%
Pacific Islander00
White305444
 45.6%
Two or More Races1636
 125%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients41.9%34.3%
 7.6%


Schools Near South Topsail Elementary









Frequently Asked Questions about South Topsail Elementary

South Topsail Elementary ranks 187th of 1505 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

In the 2022-23 school year, 557 students attended South Topsail Elementary.

Students who attend South Topsail Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Topsail Middle
High : Pender Early College High
High : Topsail High

Students at South Topsail Elementary are 80% White, 9% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 3% African American, 1% Asian.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

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.





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