Gardners Elementary

Summary:

Gardners Elementary is a public elementary school in Elm City, North Carolina, serving 219 students from kindergarten to 5th grade. This school is part of the Wilson County Schools district, which is ranked 88 out of 242 districts in the state.

Gardners Elementary stands out for its strong academic performance, consistently ranking among the top 25% of North Carolina elementary schools. In the 2023-2024 school year, the school outperformed the Wilson County Schools and North Carolina state averages in both mathematics and reading across all grade levels. For example, in 5th-grade mathematics, Gardners Elementary had a proficiency rate of 85.3%, compared to 67.1% for the district and 58.1% for the state. The school's performance is particularly impressive for Hispanic and low-socioeconomic status (SES) students, ranking in the top 5% and top 2% of North Carolina elementary schools, respectively, in these subgroups.

Gardners Elementary also stands out for its low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 13.6 to 15.3 over the past three school years, which is lower than many nearby schools. However, the school serves a predominantly low-income population, with 45.29% to 98.68% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch over the past three years. Despite this challenge, the school's strong academic performance, particularly in mathematics and science, is noteworthy. For example, in 5th-grade science, Gardners Elementary had a proficiency rate of 85.3% in 2023-2024, compared to 74.3% for Wilson County Schools and 66.2% for the state. While some nearby schools, such as New Hope Elementary, also demonstrate strong academic performance, Gardners Elementary stands out as a high-achieving school serving a predominantly low-income population.


Detail:

Public K-5

 5404 NC 42 Hwy E
       Elm City, NC  27822-8294


(252) 399-7920

District: Wilson County Schools

SchoolDigger Rank:
161st of 1,505 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $10,906 Help


Students who attend Gardners Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Speight Middle
High:    Beddingfield High
    Wilson Early College Academy

Student/teacher ratio:  13.6 Help
Number of students:  219

Racial breakdown:

White:
40.2%
Hispanic:
31.1%
African American:
22.8%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  98.6% Help


 See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

 Compare Gardners Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Gardners Elementary ranks better than 89.3% of elementary schools in North Carolina. It also ranks 4th among 13 ranked elementary schools in the Wilson County Schools District. (See more...)
Help
Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 86.3. (See more...)
Student Body
Help
Compare Details Student population at Gardners Elementary is diverse. Racial makeup is: White (40.2%), Hispanic (31.1%), African American (22.8%). (See more...)
Help
Compare Details 98.6% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
Help
Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Gardners Elementary is 13.6, which is the 2nd best among 13 elementary schools in the Wilson County Schools District. (See more...)
Help
Compare Gardners Elementary employs 16 full-time teachers.
Finance
Help
Compare Details The average total spent per student at Gardners Elementary is $10,906, which is the 5th highest among 13 elementary schools in the Wilson County Schools District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Gardners Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Gardners Elementary 161st of 1505 North Carolina public elementary schools. (See Gardners Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
Hispanic students:
White students:


Wilson County Schools:

SchoolDigger ranks Wilson County Schools 88th of 242 North Carolina school districts. (See district ranking list.)


What do you think?

Your rating for Gardners Elementary?

Rank History for Gardners Elementary

Help
Compare

Rank History for all students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2006 75.63 238th 1276 81.3%
2007 73.99 279th 1293 78.4%
2008 76.78 245th 1324 81.5%
2009 75.52 287th 1354 78.8%
2010 82.61 148th 1363 89.1%
2011 74.23 316th 1381 77.1%
2012 83.65 130th 1388 90.6%
2013 83.26 180th 1403 87.2%
2014 83.39 188th 1390 86.5%
2015 78.78 259th 1440 82.0%
2016 69.63 403rd 1425 71.7%
2017 54.82 669th 1429 53.2%
2018 55.50 657th 1434 54.2%
2019 79.41 239th 1473 83.8%
2021 64.12 498th 1489 66.6%
2022 80.26 243rd 1514 83.9%
2023 83.08 196th 1502 87.0%
2024 86.30 161st 1505 89.3%
See the entire list of North Carolina Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 72.60 267th 1332 80.0%
2019 91.36 44th 1361 96.8%
2021 64.26 351st 1329 73.6%
2022 89.20 58th 1366 95.8%
2023 91.70 35th 1437 97.6%
2024 93.72 30th 1450 97.9%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 43.14 872nd 1405 37.9%
2019 77.50 254th 1424 82.2%
2021 54.46 615th 1440 57.3%
2022 78.85 242nd 1458 83.4%
2023 83.44 170th 1459 88.3%
2024 84.11 165th 1455 88.7%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 61.86 528th 1413 62.6%
2019 75.91 274th 1430 80.8%
2021 73.27 347th 1444 76.0%
2022 78.40 254th 1464 82.7%
2023 80.10 225th 1461 84.6%
2024 84.77 160th 1464 89.1%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 99.21 2nd 949 99.8%
2021 64.66 195th 896 78.2%
2022 99.70 2nd 927 99.8%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 64.54 243rd 851 71.4%
2019 86.27 59th 865 93.2%
2021 89.30 57th 843 93.2%
2022 89.87 49th 893 94.5%
2023 90.18 50th 915 94.5%
2024 91.65 37th 951 96.1%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Gardners Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 38.11 809th 1178 31.3%
2019 66.59 368th 1183 68.9%
2021 40.09 719th 1172 38.7%
2022 57.87 487th 1194 59.2%
2023 86.50 101st 1183 91.5%
2024 81.70 171st 1166 85.3%
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.

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





Data source: North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction

We're sorry, but no reviews have been submitted for Gardners Elementary.

If you have first-hand knowledge about Gardners Elementary, submit a rating!


Reviews:
No reviews have been submitted!


Enrollment information for Gardners Elementary

Help
Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 127 158 0 7 0 n/a n/a -1 291
1989 132 159 0 3 0 n/a n/a 0 294
1990 127 153 1 5 0 n/a n/a 0 286
1991 144 143 0 3 0 n/a n/a 0 290
1992 146 144 0 3 0 n/a n/a 0 293
1993 166 138 0 7 0 n/a n/a 0 311
1994 161 131 0 4 0 n/a n/a 0 296
1995 187 138 0 6 0 n/a n/a 0 331
1996 187 138 0 6 0 n/a n/a 0 331
1997 160 131 0 12 1 n/a n/a 0 304
1998 178 135 0 18 0 n/a n/a 0 331
1999 168 136 0 16 0 n/a n/a 0 320
2000 165 146 0 16 0 n/a n/a 0 327
2001 162 149 2 12 0 n/a n/a 0 325
2002 153 135 3 22 0 n/a n/a 0 313
2003 153 135 3 22 0 n/a n/a 0 313
2004 156 134 3 48 0 n/a n/a 0 341
2005 151 125 3 51 0 n/a n/a 0 330
2006 151 134 2 54 0 n/a n/a 0 341
2007 139 130 2 67 1 n/a n/a 5 344
2008 143 109 1 74 1 n/a n/a 11 339
2009 147 113 0 94 1 n/a n/a 0 355
2010 131 85 0 106 0 n/a n/a 0 322
2011 131 72 0 92 0 0 14 0 309
2012 121 79 0 101 0 0 15 0 316
2013 120 83 0 101 0 0 13 0 317
2014 122 67 0 96 0 0 11 0 296
2015 107 62 0 110 0 0 7 0 286
2016 94 63 0 117 0 0 8 0 282
2017 86 50 0 104 0 0 7 0 247
2018 90 57 0 100 0 0 7 0 254
2019 72 52 0 105 0 0 8 0 237
2020 78 51 0 95 0 0 11 0 235
2021 76 53 0 88 0 0 10 0 227
2022 81 54 0 78 0 0 10 0 223
2023 88 50 0 68 0 0 13 0 219

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 Gardners Elementary

Help
Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 291 17.0 17.1 45.7
1989 294 16.0 18.3 49
1990 286 20.0 14.3 51.7
1991 290 20.0 14.5 51
1992 293 18.0 16.2 38.6
1993 311 17.0 18.3 44.4
1994 296 18.0 16.4 47.3
1995 331 19.0 17.4 38.4
1996 331 19.0 17.4 38.4
1997 304 18.0 16.9 40.5
1998 331 19.0 17.4 45.6
1999 320 20.0 16.0 54.1
2000 327 20.0 16.4 58.4
2001 325 20.0 16.3 57.8
2002 313 16.0 19.6 63.3
2003 313 16.0 19.6 63.3
2004 341 13.0 26.2 68
2005 330 13.0 25.4 64.5
2006 341 13.0 26.2 66.9
2007 344 n/a n/a 69.3
2008 339 21.6 15.7 73.8
2009 355 21.8 16.3 65.6
2010 322 19.2 16.7 72.4
2011 309 18.2 16.9 73.8
2012 316 17.2 18.3 72.5
2013 317 19.0 16.6 77.9
2014 296 20.0 14.8 77
2015 286 19.0 15.0 98.3
2016 282 17.0 16.5 96.5
2017 247 17.0 14.5 98.8
2018 254 16.2 15.6 98.8
2019 237 14.9 15.9 98.3
2020 235 15.2 15.4 98.7
2021 227 14.8 15.3 98.7
2022 223 15.7 14.1 45.3
2023 219 16.0 13.6 98.6

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 Gardners Elementary

Help
Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 291 17.0 17.1 45.7
1989 294 16.0 18.3 49
1990 286 20.0 14.3 51.7
1991 290 20.0 14.5 51
1992 293 18.0 16.2 38.6
1993 311 17.0 18.3 44.4
1994 296 18.0 16.4 47.3
1995 331 19.0 17.4 38.4
1996 331 19.0 17.4 38.4
1997 304 18.0 16.9 40.5
1998 331 19.0 17.4 45.6
1999 320 20.0 16.0 54.1
2000 327 20.0 16.4 58.4
2001 325 20.0 16.3 57.8
2002 313 16.0 19.6 63.3
2003 313 16.0 19.6 63.3
2004 341 13.0 26.2 68
2005 330 13.0 25.4 64.5
2006 341 13.0 26.2 66.9
2007 344 n/a n/a 69.3
2008 339 21.6 15.7 73.8
2009 355 21.8 16.3 65.6
2010 322 19.2 16.7 72.4
2011 309 18.2 16.9 73.8
2012 316 17.2 18.3 72.5
2013 317 19.0 16.6 77.9
2014 296 20.0 14.8 77
2015 286 19.0 15.0 98.3
2016 282 17.0 16.5 96.5
2017 247 17.0 14.5 98.8
2018 254 16.2 15.6 98.8
2019 237 14.9 15.9 98.3
2020 235 15.2 15.4 98.7
2021 227 14.8 15.3 98.7
2022 223 15.7 14.1 45.3
2023 219 16.0 13.6 98.6

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 Gardners Elementary

Help

YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $1,587 (14.6%) $9,319 (85.4%) $10,906

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

Impact of COVID-19 on Gardners 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 239th of 1473 Elementary schoolsRanks 196th of 1502 Elementary schools
 3.2%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Mathematics (Gardners Elementary)94.493.8
 0.6%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Wilson County Schools)60.666.3
 5.7%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)64.361.1
 3.2%
3rd Grade Reading (Gardners Elementary)77.846.9
 30.9%
   3rd Grade Reading (Wilson County Schools)53.248
 5.2%
   3rd Grade Reading (North Carolina)56.848
 8.8%
4th Grade Mathematics (Gardners Elementary)62.873.5
 10.7%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Wilson County Schools)52.160.2
 8.1%
   4th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
4th Grade Reading (Gardners Elementary)55.873.5
 17.7%
   4th Grade Reading (Wilson County Schools)57.362.2
 4.9%
   4th Grade Reading (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
5th Grade Mathematics (Gardners Elementary)85.493.5
 8.1%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Wilson County Schools)61.465.7
 4.3%
   5th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)60.255.9
 4.3%
5th Grade Reading (Gardners Elementary)65.954.8
 11.1%
   5th Grade Reading (Wilson County Schools)55.756.7
 1%
   5th Grade Reading (North Carolina)54.648
 6.6%
5th Grade Science (Gardners Elementary)92.793.5
 0.8%
   5th Grade Science (Wilson County Schools)79.776.8
 2.9%
   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 Students237219
 7.6%
African American5250
 3.8%
American Indian00
Asian00
Hispanic10568
 35.2%
Pacific Islander00
White7288
 22.2%
Two or More Races813
 62.5%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients98.3%98.6%
 0.3%


Schools Near Gardners Elementary









Frequently Asked Questions about Gardners Elementary

Gardners Elementary ranks 161st of 1505 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Students at Gardners Elementary are 40% White, 31% Hispanic, 23% African American, 6% Two or more races.

Students who attend Gardners Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Speight Middle
High : Beddingfield High
High : Wilson Early College Academy

In the 2022-23 school year, 219 students attended Gardners Elementary.


Rate Gardners Elementary!



Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Gardners Elementary!




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.





Diagnostics

None retrieved from Database in 98 milliseconds.