Enrollment
128
Elementary
DISTRICT 342 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WATAUGA COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370483001934
Bethel Elementary
138 Bethel School Rd, Sugar Grove, NC 28679 · (828) 297-2240 · Watauga County
GRADES PK–08ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL128 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 53% of North Carolina public elementary schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded North Carolina public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
7.7:1
17 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.7:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
55%
71 students
DISTRICT 45% · STATE 82%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 8 | 6% |
| Kindergarten | 12 | 9% |
| Grade 1 | 14 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 16 | 13% |
| Grade 3 | 13 | 10% |
| Grade 4 | 11 | 9% |
| Grade 5 | 14 | 11% |
| Grade 6 | 13 | 10% |
| Grade 7 | 11 | 9% |
| Grade 8 | 16 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (12) is 25% smaller than its 8th grade class (16).
Student demographics
19%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 32% · STATE 71% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
NC EOG / EOC 2024-25 . % Grade Level Proficient (Level 3+)English Language Arts
61.5%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
56.4%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 62 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 56 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all North Carolina schools, those numbers are about 51 and 52.
Source: NC EOG / EOC. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
61.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
61.9%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-0.5pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 61% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 62% typical for North Carolina schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among North Carolina's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Bethel Elementary
Bethel Elementary's state test result (61.4% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel Elementary this school | 128 | 55.5% | 61.4% |
| Mabel Elementary Zionville | 140 | 66.4% | 57.1% |
| Knotts Island Elementary Knotts Island | 91 | 44.0% | 78.5% |
| T S Cooper Elementary Sunbury | 170 | 57.1% | 61.9% |
| Forbush Elementary East Bend | 208 | 36.1% | 70.9% |
| Buckland Elementary Gates | 220 | 50.9% | 50.0% |
Matched among North Carolina elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Bethel Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Watauga County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 61.4% | #461 of 1,297 | #6 of 8 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 56.4% | #717 of 1,296 | #7 of 8 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 61.5% | #291 of 1,300 | #5 of 8 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 128 | #1,449 of 1,485 | #9 of 9 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 55.5% | #1,133 of 1,414 | #3 of 8 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
128
-22 (-15%) vs 2020
-33% since 1990-91, when it was 191
Student : Teacher
7.7:1
was 7.5:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 128 | 16.6 | 7.7:1 | 55% (71) |
| 2023-24 | 143 | 18 | 8.0:1 | 55% (78) |
| 2022-23 | 134 | 17.8 | 7.5:1 | 53% (71) |
| 2020-21 | 150 | 20 | 7.5:1 | 44% (66) |
| 2017-18 | 152 | 17.5 | 8.7:1 | 52% (79) |
| 2015-16 | 175 | 15 | 11.7:1 | 61% (107) |
| 2010-11 | 177 | 16 | 11.1:1 | 59% (104) |
| 2000-01 | 157 | 20 | 7.8:1 | 69% (108) |
| 1990-91 | 191 | 11 | 17.4:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Bethel Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 16% (152 to 128); teachers down 5% (17.5 to 16.6).
About Bethel Elementary
Bethel Elementary is listed by the National Center for Education Statistics as an elementary school in Sugar Grove, North Carolina. It reported 128 students in pre-K through 8 in 2024-25. By comparison, elementary schools in North Carolina enroll about 467 students on average.
Watauga County Schools has 4,658 students spread across 11 schools.
White students account for 90% of the school's enrollment. The school is also 7% multiracial and 3% Hispanic. Among Watauga County residents, the White share is about 90%. Its diversity index, the chance that two randomly chosen students belong to different racial or ethnic groups, is 19%.
Bethel Elementary reports a ratio of 7.7 students per teacher, from 16.6 full-time-equivalent teachers. Across elementary schools in North Carolina, the average ratio is 14.9:1. Lunch program data show 55% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. The gap from the 39% average for public schools in Watauga County is 16 points.
On the allk12 Grade, Bethel Elementary lands at B-, ahead of 53% of North Carolina public elementary schools.
On BeatsExpectations, Bethel Elementary is within a point of its prediction, a result in the middle 80% of North Carolina schools.
For Watauga County, Census Bureau data show the median household earns about $51,693 a year, roughly 48% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 9%. Public schools in Watauga County number 12, with about 4,821 students.
The closest school to Bethel Elementary is Mabel Elementary, located about 6.0 miles away. There are 5 more public schools inside ten miles. Nearby schools average 64.8% on proficiency, and Bethel Elementary is below that at 61.4%.
Federal records code the school's setting as Rural: Distant.
Enrollment figures show a drop of 22 students from 2020-21 to 2024-25.
The Bethel Elementary discussion page is a place for homework, tutoring, and testing dates. You can also rate the school on this page.
Watauga County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
55,123
Census ACS
Median income
$51,693
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
48%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
4,821 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Watauga County Schools
- Watauga HighHigh · 1,289 students
- Hardin Park ElementaryElementary · 854 students
- Parkway ElementaryElementary · 610 students
- Blowing Rock ElementaryElementary · 409 students
- Valle Crucis ElementaryElementary · 345 students
- Green Valley ElementaryElementary · 292 students
Other Bethel Elementary schools
10 other US public schools in 7 states are named Bethel Elementary. Bethel Elementary is the 10th largest of the 11.
- Bethel ElementaryMidland, NC · 611 students
- Bethel ElementaryCanton, NC · 537 students
- Bethel ElementaryBethel, NC · 232 students
- Bethel Elementary SchoolTipp City, OH · 944 students
- Bethel ElementarySimpsonville, SC · 915 students
Nearby schools
- Mabel Elementary6.0 mi · 140
- Cove Creek Elementary6.1 mi · 289
- Valle Crucis Elementary7.0 mi · 345
- Roan Creek Elementary8.9 mi · 343
- Little Milligan9.6 mi · 89
- Banner Elk Elementary10.1 mi · 159
Frequently asked questions
About Bethel ElementaryHow many students attend Bethel Elementary?
Bethel Elementary enrolls approximately 128 students in grades PK-08.
What grades does Bethel Elementary serve?
Bethel Elementary serves grades PK-08.
How many teachers does Bethel Elementary have?
Bethel Elementary employs 17 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 7.7:1.
How diverse is Bethel Elementary?
Bethel Elementary reports a student body of 90% White, 3% Hispanic, 7% Two or more.
Is Bethel Elementary public or private?
Bethel Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Watauga County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.