Best Public Schools in Zip Code 23803

Summary:

The 23803 zip code area in Virginia contains 6 schools, including 5 elementary schools and 1 middle school, with no high schools or alternative schools. The schools in this area show a stark contrast in academic performance, with Matoaca Middle School and Matoaca Elementary School in Chesterfield County Public Schools performing significantly better than the Petersburg City Public Schools elementary schools of Pleasants Lane Elementary and Cool Spring Elementary.

The data reveals a strong correlation between poverty levels, as measured by free/reduced lunch rates, and academic performance. The Petersburg City elementary schools have over 100% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch and consistently rank near the bottom of Virginia schools, while the Chesterfield County schools have lower but still high poverty rates around 45-80% and perform much better. Interestingly, spending per student does not appear to be the primary driver of these performance differences, as the Petersburg schools actually spend more per student on average than the Chesterfield schools.

The one standout school in the area is Matoaca Middle School, which performs above the state and county averages on most assessments despite serving a relatively high-poverty student population. This suggests the school may have effective practices or resources that could potentially be replicated at other struggling schools in the region.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				SOL Algebra I (2024)		SOL Mathematics (2024)				SOL Science (2024)		SOL Earth Science (2024)	SOL English Reading (2024)						SOL Civics and Economics (2024)	SOL VA Studies (2024)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2021)
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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SOL Algebra I 7th Grade	SOL Algebra I 8th Grade	SOL Mathematics 3rd Grade	SOL Mathematics 4th Grade	SOL Mathematics 5th Grade	SOL Mathematics 6th Grade	SOL Science 5th Grade	SOL Science 8th Grade	SOL Earth Science 8th Grade	SOL English Reading 3rd Grade	SOL English Reading 4th Grade	SOL English Reading 5th Grade	SOL English Reading 6th Grade	SOL English Reading 7th Grade	SOL English Reading 8th Grade	SOL Civics and Economics 8th Grade	SOL VA Studies 4th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Central St. Hosp. Education Pr.	Public, Alternative	PK, KG-12	Bldg 114	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Central State Hospital	No	No	No	No	(804) 524-7676	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Southside Va Training Center	Public, Alternative	PK, KG-12	Warehouse West Washington St	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Southside Virginia Training Center	No	No	No	No	(804) 524-7340	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Ettrick Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	20910 Chesterfield Ave.	Ettrick	23803	Petersburg city	Chesterfield County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(804) 520-6005	500	43	11.6	81.0%	95 (19.0%)	332 (66.4%)	41 (8.2%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (5.8%)	29	854^th of 1114 public elementary schools	23.3%		35.8	777^th of 1114 public elementary schools	30.3%	77			62.5	68.4	40.0		50.6			55.7	65.8	55.7					71.2	$7,875	$556	$7,319
Matoaca Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	6627 River Rd	South Chesterfield	23803	Petersburg city	Chesterfield County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(804) 590-3100	619	43	14.3	80.8%	316 (51.1%)	210 (33.9%)	52 (8.4%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	37 (6.0%)	51.4	593^rd of 1114 public elementary schools	46.8%		49.4	614^th of 1114 public elementary schools	44.9%	21			58.9	76.9	62.2		79.4			62.0	74.7	70.7					75.6	$6,650	$290	$6,360
Pleasants Lane Elementary	Public	K-5	100 Pleasants Lane	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Petersburg City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(804) 862-7013	540	39	13.8	102.4%	12 (2.2%)	470 (87.0%)	46 (8.5%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.6%)	6 (1.1%)	1.9	1107^th of 1114 public elementary schools	0.6%		1.8	1107^th of 1114 public elementary schools	0.6%				38.1	16.7	13.2		10.3			46.3	31.7	29.0					8.4	$7,628	$1,188	$6,440
Lakemont Elementary	Public	K-5	51 Gibbons St	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Petersburg City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(804) 862-7007	349	32	10.9	102.6%	18 (5.2%)	248 (71.1%)	77 (22.1%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	0.5	1113^th of 1114 public elementary schools	0.1%		2.8	1098^th of 1114 public elementary schools	1.4%	15			12.5	21.6	19.7		36.1			24.6	26.0	31.7					9.5	$9,196	$1,885	$7,311
Cool Spring Elementary	Public	K-5	1450 Talley Avenue	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Petersburg City Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(804) 862-7002	530	38	13.9	102.5%	14 (2.6%)	475 (89.6%)	35 (6.6%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	1.7	1108^th of 1114 public elementary schools	0.5%		1.5	1109^th of 1114 public elementary schools	0.4%	1			37.8	35.4	31.6		18.6			33.7	41.8	36.8					20.3	$7,255	$973	$6,282
Matoaca Middle	Public	6-8	6001 Hickory Road	Petersburg	23803	Petersburg city	Chesterfield County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(804) 590-3130	865	59	14.6	45.1%	417 (48.2%)	332 (38.4%)	50 (5.8%)	9 (1.0%)	3 (0.3%)	3 (0.3%)	51 (5.9%)	20.3	361^st of 417 public middle schools	13.4%		28.9	328^th of 422 public middle schools	22.3%	33	100.0	69.8				37.1		31.0	81.6				64.4	58.1	59.7	65.5		$7,348	$124	$7,224

Cities Near Zip Code 23803

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Petersburg	0.38 mi	12	358^th
South Chesterfield	1.87 mi	1	225^th
Ettrick	2.26 mi	1	296^th
Colonial Heights	3.83 mi	7	218^th
Chesterfield	4.43 mi	13	289^th

See the top VA Virginia cities

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