Enrollment
264
Elementary
DISTRICT 273 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CHEROKEE COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370078000325
Ranger Elementary
101 Hardy Truett Road, Murphy, NC 28906 · (828) 644-5111 · Cherokee County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL264 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.3:1
20 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.2:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
261 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 | 7% |
| Kindergarten | 37 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 43 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 40 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 50 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 42 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 34 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (37) is 9% larger than its 5th grade class (34).
Student demographics
16%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 30% · 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
48.0%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
64.2%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 48 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 64 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
61.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.6%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+12.4pp
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 Ranger Elementary
Ranger Elementary's state test result (61.1% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ranger Elementary this school | 264 | 98.9% | 61.1% |
| Down East Middle and Smyrna Elementary Smyrna | 262 | 98.9% | 65.5% |
| C B Eller Elementary School Elkin | 248 | 97.6% | 59.9% |
| Morgan Elementary Gold Hill | 275 | 98.9% | 46.4% |
| Shoals Elementary Pinnacle | 235 | 98.7% | 80.9% |
| Happy Valley Elementary Lenoir | 234 | 97.9% | 43.4% |
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 Ranger Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 61.1% | #467 of 1,297 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 64.2% | #499 of 1,296 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 48.0% | #686 of 1,300 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 264 | #1,263 of 1,485 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.3:1 | #302 of 1,377 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 16.3% | #1,367 of 1,379 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 98.9% | #719 of 1,414 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -7.7% | #678 of 937 |
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
264
-5 (-2%) vs 2020
+10% since 1990-91, when it was 241
Student : Teacher
13.3:1
was 12.8:1
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 | 264 | 19.8 | 13.3:1 | 99% (261) |
| 2023-24 | 277 | 23.6 | 11.7:1 | 99% (274) |
| 2022-23 | 258 | 21.8 | 11.8:1 | 99% (255) |
| 2020-21 | 269 | 21 | 12.8:1 | 99% (266) |
| 2017-18 | 286 | 20.7 | 13.8:1 | 99% (283) |
| 2015-16 | 295 | 23 | 12.8:1 | 99% (292) |
| 2010-11 | 373 | 24 | 15.5:1 | 65% (241) |
| 2000-01 | 348 | 19 | 18.3:1 | 61% (213) |
| 1990-91 | 241 | 17 | 14.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Ranger Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 8% (286 to 264); teachers down 4% (20.7 to 19.8).
About Ranger Elementary
Ranger Elementary is an elementary school in Murphy, North Carolina, and it is part of Cherokee County Schools. Total enrollment is 264 students, and the grades served are pre-K through 5. By comparison, elementary schools in North Carolina enroll about 467 students on average.
Cherokee County Schools has 13 schools and 2,992 students, and Ranger Elementary is one of those schools.
Ranger Elementary is 91% White by enrollment. Next come 5% Hispanic and 3% multiracial. That is in line with Cherokee County, where about 91% of residents are White. The diversity index for Ranger Elementary is 16%. For US public schools as a whole it is 70%.
Ranger Elementary has 19.8 full-time-equivalent teachers on staff and a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.3:1. Across elementary schools in North Carolina, the average ratio is 14.9:1. The school has 99% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Public schools in Cherokee County average a similar 98%.
Ranger Elementary's actual average proficiency rate across its state test results (61.1%) and its predicted rate (48.6%) put it outside the top and bottom 10% of North Carolina schools.
For Cherokee County, Census Bureau data show the median household earns about $53,628 a year, roughly 24% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 7%. Public schools in Cherokee County number 13, with about 2,992 students.
About 6.5 miles separate Ranger Elementary from the closest public school, Hiwassee Dam Middle. Other public schools within ten miles: 4. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 52.1%; Ranger Elementary's is 61.1%, ranking 2nd of 8.
The school is in rural territory far from an urban area, according to its NCES locale (Rural: Remote).
In 2020-21, Ranger Elementary enrolled 269; in 2024-25, 264.
The allk12 page for Ranger Elementary lets the school community talk about pickup and drop-off, after-school programs, and teacher feedback. You can also rate the school on this page.
Cherokee County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
29,562
Census ACS
Median income
$53,628
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
13
2,992 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Cherokee County Schools
- Murphy ElementaryElementary · 467 students
- Murphy HighHigh · 424 students
- Murphy MiddleMiddle · 353 students
- Andrews ElementaryElementary · 330 students
- Andrews HighHigh · 229 students
- Andrews MiddleMiddle · 167 students
Other schools in Murphy
- Murphy ElementaryElementary · 467 students
- Murphy HighHigh · 424 students
- Murphy MiddleMiddle · 353 students
- Peachtree ElementaryElementary · 166 students
- Tri-County Early College HighHigh · 153 students
- Hiwassee Dam HighHigh · 137 students
Other Ranger Elementary schools
2 other US public schools in 3 states are named Ranger Elementary. Ranger Elementary is the largest of the 3.
- Ranger Elementary SchoolRANGER, TX · 151 students
- Ranger ElementaryRanger, WV · 73 students
Nearby schools
- Hiwassee Dam Middle6.5 mi · 122
- Hiwassee Dam High6.5 mi · 137
- Martins Creek Elementary9.3 mi · 137
- East Fannin Elementary School10.0 mi · 465
- Murphy Elementary10.0 mi · 467
- Murphy High11.1 mi · 424
Frequently asked questions
About Ranger ElementaryHow large is Ranger Elementary?
Ranger Elementary enrolls approximately 264 students in grades PK-05.
Is Ranger Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Ranger Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Ranger Elementary have?
Ranger Elementary employs 20 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.3:1.
How diverse is Ranger Elementary?
Ranger Elementary reports a student body of 91% White, 5% Hispanic, 1% Black, 3% Two or more.
Who oversees Ranger Elementary?
Ranger Elementary is overseen by Cherokee County Schools in Cherokee County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.