Benton Heights Elementary

Set in Monroe, North Carolina, Benton Heights Elementary is a middle-of-the-pack elementary campus, overseen by Union County Public Schools. It hosts 451 students across grades pre-K through 5.

Across the 52 schools in Union County Public Schools (41,272 students total), Benton Heights Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Benton Heights Elementary reports that Hispanic students make up the majority at 69%; the rest reads as 20% Black, 8% White, 3% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 13% Hispanic, putting the school's mix meaningfully more Hispanic than the area baseline.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, Benton Heights Elementary has 44 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 10.3:1. The state averages around 14.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 99% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Union County (around 41%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Benton Heights Elementary performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 48.5%, the actual is 48.5%, a residual of -0.0 points.

In the area at large, ACS estimates for Union County put the typical household earns roughly $102,900 per year, 41% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 6%. Benton Heights Elementary is one of 58 public schools in Union County (combined enrollment of about 45,934 students).

The closest other public school is Wolfe School, roughly 1.2 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 5 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Benton Heights Elementary ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, higher than the local average of 45.1%.

The campus sits in an outer-ring setting.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Benton Heights Elementary has fell 27%, going from 617 students in 2018 to 451 in 2025. The Black share of enrollment edged down from 25% to 20% over that span.

Inside the community feed, members of the Benton Heights Elementary community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.