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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ALEXANDER COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370009000029

Bethlehem Elementary

7900 NC Hwy 127, Taylorsville, NC 28681 · (828) 495-8198 · Alexander County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY41-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL435 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 86% of North Carolina public elementary schools
  • A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
  • ABeats 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

Enrollment
435
Elementary
DISTRICT 277 · STATE 467
Student : Teacher
17.0:1
26 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.6:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
431 students
DISTRICT 99% · STATE 82%
Community
1
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

GradeStudentsShare
Pre-K153%
Kindergarten6114%
Grade 17116%
Grade 26816%
Grade 37116%
Grade 47016%
Grade 57918%

This year's kindergarten class (61) is 23% smaller than its 5th grade class (79).

Student demographics
39%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 41% · STATE 71% · US 70%
White
33577%
DISTRICT 75% · STATE 42% · US 43%
Hispanic
4310%
DISTRICT 13% · STATE 22% · US 30%
Black
113%
DISTRICT 4% · STATE 25% · US 15%
Asian
194%
DISTRICT 2% · STATE 4% · US 6%
Two+
266%
DISTRICT 5% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Native American
10%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 1% · US 1%
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
Male
24055%
Female
19545%

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Test scores

NC EOG / EOC 2024-25 . % Grade Level Proficient (Level 3+)
English Language Arts
59.8%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
67.1%
NC avg 52.2%

What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 60 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 67 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 · methodology
Tier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of NC schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
67.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.6%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+18.8pp
above demographic expectation

What this means: About 67% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 49% typical for North Carolina schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 19 points, placing it in North Carolina's top 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 Bethlehem Elementary

Bethlehem Elementary's state test result (67.4% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.

SchoolStudentsLow-incomeProficient
Bethlehem Elementary this school43599.1%67.4%
John R Lawrence Elementary School
Archdale
39499.2%66.7%
Tyro Elementary
Lexington
39399.2%49.2%
Valdese Elementary
Valdese
53099.4%59.2%
Poplar Springs Elementary School
King
49599.4%63.8%
Junaluska Elementary
Waynesville
42899.3%73.6%
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 Bethlehem Elementary ranks

Among elementary schools
MeasureThis schoolIn North CarolinaIn Alexander County
State test proficiency
ranked highest first
67.4%#284 of 1,297#1 of 7
Math proficiency
ranked highest first
67.1%#422 of 1,296#3 of 7
Reading proficiency
ranked highest first
59.8%#331 of 1,300#1 of 7
Enrollment
ranked largest first
435#795 of 1,485#1 of 7
Students per teacher
ranked fewest first
17.0:1#1,216 of 1,377N/A
Diversity index
ranked most diverse first
39.1%#1,186 of 1,379N/A
Free and reduced lunch
ranked highest share first
99.1%#608 of 1,414#2 of 7
Enrollment change since 2017-18
ranked steepest decline first
-2.5%#867 of 937#6 of 6
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 2024-25
Enrollment
435
+20 (+5%) vs 2020
-28% since 1990-91, when it was 602
Student : Teacher
17.0:1
was 16.0:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-2543525.617.0:199% (431)
2023-2445227.816.3:199% (449)
2022-2345827.816.5:151% (234)
2020-214152616.0:139% (160)
2017-1844625.317.7:131% (138)
2015-164762717.6:137% (174)
2010-114783015.9:137% (177)
2000-017163719.4:1N/A
1990-916022821.5:1N/A
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Bethlehem Elementary.

Since 2017-18: students down 2% (446 to 435); teachers up 1% (25.3 to 25.6).

About Bethlehem Elementary

Bethlehem Elementary operates as a mid-sized elementary school in Taylorsville, North Carolina. It reports enrollment of 435 students in pre-K through 5.

In Alexander County Schools, 11 schools enroll a combined 4,344 students.

More than half of the students at Bethlehem Elementary are White (77%). The next largest groups are 10% Hispanic, 6% multiracial, 4% Asian, and 3% Black. In Alexander County overall, about 87% of residents are White. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Bethlehem Elementary scores 39%.

Bethlehem Elementary reported 25.6 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25, a ratio of 17.0:1. Elementary schools in North Carolina average 14.9:1, 2.1 fewer students per teacher than here. There are 431 students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, 99% of enrollment. The figure for public schools in Alexander County is close, at 99%.

Bethlehem Elementary earns an A on the allk12 Grade, which blends test scores, results against poverty-based expectations, and the three-year trend. It scored higher than 86% of North Carolina public elementary schools.

Bethlehem Elementary is a top-10% school in North Carolina on BeatsExpectations, beating its predicted average proficiency rate across its state test results of 48.6% with an actual 67.4%.

In Alexander County, median household income comes to about $65,354, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 17% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 9%. Alexander County counts 12 public schools with about 4,344 students.

Straight-line distance to the nearest public school, West Alexander Middle, is about 2.5 miles. Around the school, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Among the 8 closest schools with test data, this one included, Bethlehem Elementary ranks 2nd on average proficiency.

Federal data place Bethlehem Elementary in the Rural: Fringe locale, which means it is in rural territory close to an urban area.

Enrollment rose by 5% across 4 years, from 415 in 2020-21 to 435 in 2024-25. The student-to-teacher ratio increased from 16.0:1 in 2020-21 to 17.0:1 in 2024-25.

Bethlehem Elementary has a community page on allk12 for topics such as pickup and drop-off, after-school programs, and teacher feedback. You can also rate the school on this page.

Alexander County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
36,412
Census ACS
Median income
$65,354
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
17%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
4,344 students

Quick facts

School name
Bethlehem Elementary
District
Alexander County Schools
Address
7900 NC Hwy 127, Taylorsville, NC 28681
Phone
(828) 495-8198
County
Alexander County
Level
Elementary
Grade range
PK–05
Total enrollment
435
Teachers (FTE)
26
Student–teacher ratio
17.0:1
Free and reduced lunch
431 (99%)
Locale
41-Rural: Fringe
NCES ID
370009000029
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Alexander County Schools
Other schools in Taylorsville
Other Bethlehem Elementary schools

5 other US public schools in 5 states are named Bethlehem Elementary. Bethlehem Elementary is the 3rd largest of the 6.

Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Bethlehem Elementary
How large is Bethlehem Elementary?
Bethlehem Elementary enrolls approximately 435 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Bethlehem Elementary serve?
Bethlehem Elementary serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Bethlehem Elementary?
Approximately 17.0:1 students per teacher at Bethlehem Elementary.
What is the student diversity at Bethlehem Elementary?
Student demographics at Bethlehem Elementary are roughly 77% White, 10% Hispanic, 3% Black, 4% Asian, 6% Two or more.
Who oversees Bethlehem Elementary?
Bethlehem Elementary is overseen by Alexander County Schools in Alexander County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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