Bell Elementary

Bell Elementary is one of the cozy primary schools in Asheville, North Carolina, operated by Buncombe County Schools, with 224 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 5. That puts it 52% below the typical public school in North Carolina, which averages around 467 students.

Across the 45 schools in Buncombe County Schools (22,452 students total), Bell Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On demographics, Bell Elementary reports that the largest single group is White, at 67% of enrollment; the rest consists of 11% Hispanic, 10% Black, 10% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 82% White, putting the school's mix noticeably less White than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Bell Elementary logs 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 12.4:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 14.9:1, putting Bell Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. An estimated 96% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. That share is north of Buncombe County's rate of about 88%.

After controlling for student poverty, Bell Elementary performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 49.5%, the actual is 65.0%, a residual of +15.4 points.

Around the school, Buncombe County reports that the typical household earns roughly $74,436 per year, roughly 46% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 6%. In all, Buncombe County runs 61 public schools (combined enrollment of about 29,908 students), of which Bell Elementary is one.

The closest other public school is Buncombe County Schools Virtual Academy, roughly 0.8 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 6 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Bell Elementary ranks 3rd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 54.9%.

The school occupies a high-density site.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count decreased 23%: 290 students in 2018 compared to 224 in 2025. Class-load math has fell: from 13.6:1 in 2018 to 12.4:1 in 2025.

Inside the community feed, the feed for Bell Elementary typically covers open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.