1
What's the biggest difference between Cary Elementary and what you expected?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
477
Elementary
DISTRICT 594 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WAKE COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370472001843
Cary Elementary
400 Kildaire Farm Road, Cary, NC 27511 · (919) 460-3455 · Wake County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL477 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.7:1
32 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.5:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
43%
203 students
DISTRICT 47% · 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
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 7 | 1% |
| Kindergarten | 60 | 13% |
| Grade 1 | 74 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 87 | 18% |
| Grade 3 | 87 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 80 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 82 | 17% |
Student demographics
61%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 73% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on published attendance-zone data from Wake County Schools. Zones change; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
NC EOG / EOC 2024-25 . % Grade Level Proficient (Level 3+)English Language Arts
67.2%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
69.3%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 67 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 69 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
70.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
65.8%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+4.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 70% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 66% 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 →
Where Cary Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Wake County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 70.2% | #228 of 1,297 | #45 of 120 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 69.3% | #350 of 1,296 | #54 of 120 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 67.2% | #177 of 1,300 | #41 of 121 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 477 | #679 of 1,485 | #110 of 139 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.7:1 | #675 of 1,377 | #104 of 137 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 61.1% | #663 of 1,379 | #97 of 137 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 42.6% | #1,202 of 1,414 | #57 of 128 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -9.7% | #601 of 937 | #68 of 91 |
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.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
477
+30 (+7%) vs 2020
-49% since 1990-91, when it was 940
Student : Teacher
14.7:1
was 13.6:1
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 | 477 | 32.4 | 14.7:1 | 43% (203) |
| 2023-24 | 440 | 33.5 | 13.1:1 | 39% (171) |
| 2022-23 | 470 | 38 | 12.4:1 | 39% (185) |
| 2020-21 | 447 | 33 | 13.6:1 | 28% (123) |
| 2017-18 | 528 | 35.5 | 14.9:1 | 41% (215) |
| 2015-16 | 560 | 41 | 13.7:1 | 44% (247) |
| 2010-11 | 494 | 38 | 13.0:1 | 34% (170) |
| 2000-01 | 758 | 57 | 13.3:1 | 44% (333) |
| 1990-91 | 940 | 58 | 16.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Cary Elementary.
About Cary Elementary
Cary Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school in Cary, North Carolina, administered by Wake County Schools. Grades offered run from pre-K through 5, with 477 students enrolled.
Enrollment across the 198 schools in Wake County Schools totals 163,176 students.
At Cary Elementary, White students make up 56% of the student body. It is also 23% Hispanic, 11% Black, 5% multiracial, and 4% Asian. For comparison, Wake County is about 58% White. Cary Elementary's diversity index is 61%, against a US figure of 70%.
Teachers at Cary Elementary total 32.4 full-time equivalents, and the ratio is 14.7:1. For comparison, elementary schools in North Carolina average 14.9:1. Federal records put free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at 43%. For comparison, public schools in Wake County average 42%.
Cary Elementary sits between the top and bottom 10% of North Carolina schools on BeatsExpectations, with an actual average proficiency rate on state tests of 70.2% and a predicted 65.8%.
Census Bureau estimates for Wake County show that the median household income is $105,768, 57% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 5% of people live in poverty. Cary Elementary is one of 237 public schools in the county.
Kingswood Elementary is located about 0.8 miles from Cary Elementary. Around the school, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Of 8 schools in the immediate area with test results, Cary Elementary ranks 3rd on average proficiency.
Federal data place Cary Elementary in the City: Mid-size locale, which means it is inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Enrollment at Cary Elementary climbed 7% between 2020-21 and 2024-25, from 447 to 477 students. The ratio of students to teachers went from 13.6:1 to 14.7:1 over the same years.
To ask about science fairs, picture day, and bus routes, start a discussion on this page. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Wake County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
1,178,653
Census ACS
Median income
$105,768
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
57%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
237
184,790 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Wake County Schools
- Apex Friendship HighHigh · 2,748 students
- Enloe HighHigh · 2,643 students
- Panther Creek HighHigh · 2,609 students
- Millbrook HighHigh · 2,498 students
- Apex HighHigh · 2,449 students
- Leesville Road HighHigh · 2,411 students
Other schools in Cary
- Panther Creek HighHigh · 2,609 students
- Green Hope HighHigh · 2,304 students
- Green Level HighHigh · 2,283 students
- Cary HighHigh · 2,044 students
- Triangle Math and Science AcademyCombined · 1,904 students
- Mills Park MiddleMiddle · 1,632 students
Nearby schools
- Kingswood Elementary0.8 mi · 427
- East Cary Middle0.9 mi · 597
- Briarcliff Elementary0.9 mi · 486
- Northwoods Elementary1.1 mi · 579
- Cary High1.1 mi · 2,044
- Adams Elementary1.1 mi · 655
Frequently asked questions
About Cary ElementaryHow large is Cary Elementary?
Cary Elementary enrolls approximately 477 students in grades PK-05.
Is Cary Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Cary Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cary Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Cary Elementary is approximately 14.7:1 (32 FTE teachers).
How diverse is Cary Elementary?
Cary Elementary reports a student body of 56% White, 23% Hispanic, 11% Black, 4% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Who oversees Cary Elementary?
Cary Elementary is overseen by Wake County Schools in Wake County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.