Enrollment
350
Elementary
DISTRICT 301 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SURRY COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370441001747
Dobson Elementary
400 W Atkins Street, Dobson, NC 27017 · (336) 386-8913 · Surry County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL350 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 81% of North Carolina public elementary schools
- B+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
Student : Teacher
14.9:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.6:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
347 students
DISTRICT 97% · 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 | 18 | 5% |
| Kindergarten | 51 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 54 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 58 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 57 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 63 | 18% |
| Grade 5 | 49 | 14% |
This year's kindergarten class (51) is about the same size as its 5th grade class (49).
Student demographics
54%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 48% · 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
60.2%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
70.5%
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 71 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
65.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.6%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+16.7pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 65% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% 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 Dobson Elementary
Dobson Elementary's state test result (65.2% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dobson Elementary this school | 350 | 99.1% | 65.2% |
| Rockford Elementary Dobson | 335 | 99.1% | 62.4% |
| Bradley Creek Elementary Wilmington | 344 | 98.0% | 59.8% |
| Copeland Elementary Dobson | 274 | 98.9% | 57.3% |
| Pine Level Elementary Pine Level | 341 | 98.8% | 71.9% |
| Clement Elementary Autryville | 367 | 99.2% | 67.2% |
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 Dobson Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Surry County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 65.2% | #342 of 1,297 | #4 of 13 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 70.5% | #320 of 1,296 | #4 of 13 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 60.2% | #324 of 1,300 | #3 of 13 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 350 | #1,053 of 1,485 | #5 of 15 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.9:1 | #728 of 1,377 | #11 of 13 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 54.2% | #899 of 1,379 | #4 of 13 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.1% | #559 of 1,414 | #3 of 14 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -7.7% | #682 of 937 | #9 of 10 |
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
350
+34 (+11%) vs 2020
-27% since 1990-91, when it was 480
Student : Teacher
14.9:1
was 13.7:1
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 | 350 | 23.5 | 14.9:1 | 99% (347) |
| 2023-24 | 346 | 23.9 | 14.5:1 | 99% (343) |
| 2022-23 | 340 | 24.2 | 14.1:1 | 61% (207) |
| 2020-21 | 316 | 23 | 13.7:1 | 46% (145) |
| 2017-18 | 379 | 24.5 | 15.5:1 | 66% (249) |
| 2015-16 | 400 | 24 | 16.7:1 | 65% (258) |
| 2010-11 | 407 | 29 | 14.0:1 | 69% (282) |
| 2000-01 | 618 | 37 | 16.7:1 | 49% (301) |
| 1990-91 | 480 | 31 | 15.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Dobson Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 8% (379 to 350); teachers down 4% (24.5 to 23.5).
About Dobson Elementary
In Dobson, North Carolina, Dobson Elementary is a small elementary school. Enrollment in 2024-25 was 350 students in pre-K through 5. The average for elementary schools in North Carolina is about 467 students, so this school is 25% smaller than average.
A total of 20 schools make up Surry County Schools, with 7,318 students enrolled.
By race and ethnicity, Dobson Elementary is 52% White. The rest of enrollment is 43% Hispanic and 4% multiracial. Census estimates put the White share of Surry County's population at about 84%. The chance that two students picked at random at Dobson Elementary belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 54%.
The school's student-to-teacher ratio is about 14.9:1, with 23.5 full-time-equivalent teachers. Across elementary schools in North Carolina, the average ratio is about 14.9:1. Lunch subsidy eligibility at Dobson Elementary is 99%.
Measured against North Carolina public elementary schools, Dobson Elementary receives an A-. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Given its share of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Dobson Elementary would be expected to post about 48.6%. Its actual average proficiency rate on state tests is 65.2%.
Recent Census Bureau figures for Surry County show that median household income is about $55,656, about 20% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 13% of residents are in poverty. Dobson Elementary is one of 30 public schools in Surry County, which together enroll about 11,139 students.
Nearest public school: Central Middle, about 0.5 miles away. Other public schools within five miles: 6. Compared with its nearest neighbors, Dobson Elementary ranks 3rd of 8 on average proficiency.
The National Center for Education Statistics classifies the school's location as Rural: Distant, meaning it is in rural territory some distance from an urban area.
Federal counts put enrollment at 316 in 2020-21 and 350 in 2024-25, an 11% gain. The student-to-teacher ratio rose from 13.7:1 in 2020-21 to 14.9:1 in 2024-25.
Conversations here can range across science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Surry County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
71,425
Census ACS
Median income
$55,656
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
13%
Below federal line
Schools in county
30
11,139 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Surry County Schools
- North Surry HighHigh · 792 students
- Surry Central HighHigh · 679 students
- East Surry HighHigh · 576 students
- Central MiddleMiddle · 502 students
- Franklin ElementaryElementary · 473 students
- Pilot Mountain MiddleMiddle · 401 students
Other schools in Dobson
- Surry Central HighHigh · 679 students
- Central MiddleMiddle · 502 students
- Rockford ElementaryElementary · 335 students
- Surry Early CollegeHigh · 296 students
- Copeland ElementaryElementary · 274 students
- Surry Online Magnet SchoolCombined · 121 students
Nearby schools
- Central Middle0.5 mi · 502
- Surry Online Magnet School0.5 mi · 121
- Surry Early College0.9 mi · 296
- Surry Central High1.1 mi · 679
- Rockford Elementary2.4 mi · 335
- White Plains Elementary5.0 mi · 328
Frequently asked questions
About Dobson ElementaryHow many students attend Dobson Elementary?
Dobson Elementary enrolls approximately 350 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Dobson Elementary serve?
Dobson Elementary serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Dobson Elementary?
Approximately 14.9:1 students per teacher at Dobson Elementary.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Dobson Elementary?
At Dobson Elementary, the student body is approximately 52% White, 43% Hispanic, 1% Asian, 4% Two or more.
What district is Dobson Elementary in?
Dobson Elementary is part of Surry County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.