Southwest Elementary

Southwest Elementary, an expansive K-5 school in Jacksonville, North Carolina, operated by Onslow County Schools, teaches 720 students, covering grades pre-K through 5. By comparison, North Carolina's public schools average about 467 students each, so Southwest Elementary sits 54% larger than that benchmark.

Onslow County Schools runs 39 schools in total, collectively educating 27,397 students. Southwest Elementary is one of those campuses.

Demographically, Southwest Elementary records that the largest single group is White, at 61% of enrollment. The remainder is composed of 18% Hispanic, 11% Black, 9% multiracial.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, Southwest Elementary has 51 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 14.1:1. The state averages around 14.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Roughly 60% of students at Southwest Elementary qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. By comparison, Onslow County runs at roughly 51%, so the school's eligibility rate is above the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, Southwest Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 60.4% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 57.4%.

Around the school, community-level numbers for Onslow County indicate median household earnings sit near $68,148, about 26% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 9% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Southwest Elementary is one of 42 public schools in Onslow County (combined enrollment of about 27,501 students).

Nearest neighbor: Meadow View Elementary, around 2.7 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 5 other public schools cluster around Southwest Elementary. On composite proficiency, Southwest Elementary comes 2nd of 8 in the immediate cluster, above the nearby-schools average of 49.0%.

The campus sits in a low-density setting.

Over the past 7-year window. Southwest Elementary's enrollment has shrank 16% since 2018, when it stood at 862 (now 720). Class-load math has narrowed: from 16.1:1 in 2018 to 14.1:1 in 2025.

On this page, the feed for Southwest Elementary typically covers sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.