Enrollment
396
Elementary
DISTRICT 365 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CALDWELL COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370058000235
Lower Creek Elementary
630 Lower Creek Drive NE, Lenoir, NC 28645 · (828) 754-4022 · Caldwell County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL396 STUDENTS
B+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 70% 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.
- A-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
17.4:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.1:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
393 students
DISTRICT 91% · 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 74 | 19% |
| Grade 1 | 55 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 64 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 66 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 69 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 68 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (74) is 9% larger than its 5th grade class (68).
Student demographics
47%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 45% · 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
58.5%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
61.5%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 59 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 62 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
60.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.5%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+12.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 61% 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 Lower Creek Elementary
Lower Creek Elementary's state test result (60.8% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Creek Elementary this school | 396 | 99.2% | 60.8% |
| Southport Elementary Southport | 413 | 99.3% | 59.4% |
| Tyro Elementary Lexington | 393 | 99.2% | 49.2% |
| Cherryville Elementary Cherryville | 378 | 99.2% | 54.0% |
| Iron Station Elementary Iron Station | 367 | 98.6% | 70.8% |
| West Marion Elementary School Marion | 390 | 99.2% | 51.7% |
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 Lower Creek Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Caldwell County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 60.8% | #474 of 1,297 | #3 of 13 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 61.5% | #575 of 1,296 | #4 of 13 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 58.5% | #367 of 1,300 | #2 of 13 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 396 | #907 of 1,485 | #6 of 15 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 17.4:1 | #1,248 of 1,377 | #8 of 13 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 47.3% | #1,047 of 1,379 | #5 of 13 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.2% | #458 of 1,414 | #4 of 13 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -2.5% | #868 of 937 | #9 of 9 |
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
396
+29 (+8%) vs 2020
+25% since 1990-91, when it was 317
Student : Teacher
17.4:1
was 14.1:1
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 | 396 | 22.7 | 17.4:1 | 99% (393) |
| 2023-24 | 383 | 25.2 | 15.2:1 | 99% (380) |
| 2022-23 | 392 | 25.6 | 15.3:1 | 57% (222) |
| 2020-21 | 367 | 26 | 14.1:1 | 42% (154) |
| 2017-18 | 406 | 23.4 | 17.4:1 | 42% (170) |
| 2015-16 | 414 | 24 | 17.3:1 | 48% (198) |
| 2010-11 | 359 | 21 | 17.1:1 | 47% (170) |
| 2000-01 | 371 | 23 | 16.1:1 | 30% (111) |
| 1990-91 | 317 | 24 | 13.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Lower Creek Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 2% (406 to 396); teachers down 3% (23.4 to 22.7).
About Lower Creek Elementary
Lower Creek Elementary is a small elementary school in Caldwell County Schools, located in Lenoir, North Carolina. The latest federal count shows 396 students in pre-K through 5.
Caldwell County Schools is responsible for 25 schools, Lower Creek Elementary included, with 10,667 students in all.
At Lower Creek Elementary, White students make up 71% of the student body. The school is also 11% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, and 7% Black. That is lower than the 86% White share among all Caldwell County residents. The school's diversity index is 47%, meaning two students picked at random have a 47% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Lower Creek Elementary employs 22.7 full-time-equivalent teachers. That gives a ratio of about 17.4:1. This ratio sits 2.5 above the 14.9:1 average for elementary schools in North Carolina. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility was 99% in 2024-25.
The allk12 Grade for Lower Creek Elementary is B+. Compared with North Carolina public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 70% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
On BeatsExpectations, Lower Creek Elementary is 12.3 points above its prediction, a result in the middle 80% of North Carolina schools.
In the county around the school, Caldwell County, the median household income is $56,425, roughly 19% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. There are 26 public schools in Caldwell County, enrolling about 10,920 students in all.
The closest public school to Lower Creek Elementary is William Lenoir Middle, about 0.9 miles away. Counting only straight-line distance, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Among its closest neighbors with test data, Lower Creek Elementary is 2nd of 7 on proficiency.
In the federal locale system, Lower Creek Elementary is coded City: Small, for schools inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
Compared with 2020-21, the school had 29 more students in 2024-25. The school's ratio rose from 14.1:1 to 17.4:1 between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
Posts about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs are welcome on this page. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Caldwell County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
80,536
Census ACS
Median income
$56,425
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
19%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
26
10,920 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Caldwell County Schools
- South Caldwell HighHigh · 1,272 students
- Hibriten HighHigh · 818 students
- Hudson ElementaryElementary · 665 students
- Granite Falls ElementaryElementary · 647 students
- West Caldwell HighHigh · 634 students
- Hudson MiddleMiddle · 551 students
Other schools in Lenoir
- Hibriten HighHigh · 818 students
- West Caldwell HighHigh · 634 students
- William Lenoir MiddleMiddle · 512 students
- Gamewell ElementaryElementary · 459 students
- Gamewell MiddleMiddle · 457 students
- Davenport A+ SchoolElementary · 429 students
Nearby schools
- William Lenoir Middle0.9 mi · 512
- Hibriten High1.0 mi · 818
- Horizons Elementary1.4 mi · 29
- Caldwell Online Academy1.4 mi · 138
- Davenport A+ School1.7 mi · 429
- Valmead Elementary1.9 mi · 305
Frequently asked questions
About Lower Creek ElementaryHow large is Lower Creek Elementary?
Lower Creek Elementary enrolls approximately 396 students in grades PK-05.
Is Lower Creek Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Lower Creek Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many students per teacher at Lower Creek Elementary?
Approximately 17.4:1 students per teacher at Lower Creek Elementary.
How diverse is Lower Creek Elementary?
Lower Creek Elementary reports a student body of 71% White, 11% Hispanic, 7% Black, 1% Asian, 10% Two or more.
What district is Lower Creek Elementary in?
Lower Creek Elementary is part of Caldwell County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.