Enrollment
196
Elementary
DISTRICT 277 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ALEXANDER COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370009000034
Sugar Loaf Elementary
3600 NC Hwy 16N, Taylorsville, NC 28681 · (828) 632-2192 · Alexander County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL196 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 46% of North Carolina public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-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
16.9:1
12 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.6:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
98%
193 students
DISTRICT 99% · 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 | 37 | 19% |
| Grade 1 | 36 | 18% |
| Grade 2 | 23 | 12% |
| Grade 3 | 36 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 34 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 30 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (37) is 23% larger than its 5th grade class (30).
Student demographics
31%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 41% · 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
42.4%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
57.6%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 58 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
53.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.8%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+4.2pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 53% 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 Sugar Loaf Elementary
Sugar Loaf Elementary's state test result (53.0% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar Loaf Elementary this school | 196 | 98.5% | 53.0% |
| Rodgers Elementary Williamston | 219 | 98.6% | 63.9% |
| Nancy Reynolds Elementary School Westfield | 192 | 97.4% | 58.7% |
| Silver Valley Elementary Lexington | 221 | 98.6% | 48.6% |
| Meadowbrook Elementary Canton | 198 | 98.0% | 46.0% |
| Ellendale Elementary Taylorsville | 168 | 98.2% | 51.4% |
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 Sugar Loaf Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Alexander County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 53.0% | #731 of 1,297 | #4 of 7 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 57.6% | #677 of 1,296 | #4 of 7 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 42.4% | #863 of 1,300 | #7 of 7 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 196 | #1,386 of 1,485 | #6 of 7 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 98.5% | #839 of 1,414 | #6 of 7 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -16.9% | #355 of 937 | #3 of 6 |
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
196
-19 (-9%) vs 2020
-28% since 1990-91, when it was 273
Student : Teacher
16.9:1
was 15.4:1
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 | 196 | 11.6 | 16.9:1 | 98% (193) |
| 2023-24 | 194 | 12.7 | 15.3:1 | 98% (191) |
| 2022-23 | 206 | 13 | 15.8:1 | 56% (115) |
| 2020-21 | 215 | 14 | 15.4:1 | 48% (103) |
| 2017-18 | 236 | 14 | 16.9:1 | 42% (98) |
| 2015-16 | 227 | 14 | 16.2:1 | 52% (118) |
| 2010-11 | 283 | 17 | 16.6:1 | 55% (155) |
| 2000-01 | 268 | 13 | 20.6:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 273 | 13 | 21.0:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Sugar Loaf Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 17% (236 to 196); teachers down 17% (14 to 11.6).
About Sugar Loaf Elementary
Students in Taylorsville, North Carolina, attend Sugar Loaf Elementary, a small elementary school. The school reports 196 students in kindergarten through 5. The typical figure for elementary schools in North Carolina is about 467 students.
Alexander County Schools oversees Sugar Loaf Elementary and 10 other schools, with 4,344 students in total.
White students make up 83% of enrollment at Sugar Loaf Elementary. The remaining shares are 8% multiracial, 6% Black, and 3% Hispanic. Sugar Loaf Elementary's diversity index is 31%, against a US figure of 70%.
A ratio of 16.9:1 comes from the school's 11.6 full-time-equivalent teachers. That is 2.0 students per teacher above the 14.9:1 average for elementary schools in North Carolina. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility was 98% in 2024-25. For comparison, public schools in Alexander County average 99%.
The allk12 Grade for Sugar Loaf Elementary is B-. Compared with North Carolina public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 46% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
Sugar Loaf Elementary sits between the top and bottom 10% of North Carolina schools on BeatsExpectations, with an actual average proficiency rate on state tests of 53.0% and a predicted 48.8%.
Alexander County census figures show that the median household income is $65,354, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 17% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 9%. Alexander County is home to 12 public schools and about 4,344 public school students.
Of nearby public schools, Taylorsville Elementary is the closest, at about 3.5 miles. In all, 4 other public schools sit within five miles of Sugar Loaf Elementary. Among its closest neighbors with test data, Sugar Loaf Elementary is 6th of 9 on proficiency.
On the NCES locale scale, the school is Rural: Distant.
Enrollment is down 9% from 2020-21, when Sugar Loaf Elementary had 215 students, to 2024-25, when it had 196. From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the ratio rose from 15.4:1 to 16.9:1.
The allk12 site hosts a discussion page for Sugar Loaf Elementary covering things like sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Alexander County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
36,412
Census ACS
Median income
$65,354
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
17%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
4,344 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Alexander County Schools
- Alexander Central HighHigh · 1,254 students
- East Alexander MiddleMiddle · 510 students
- West Alexander MiddleMiddle · 467 students
- Bethlehem ElementaryElementary · 435 students
- Hiddenite ElementaryElementary · 370 students
- Wittenburg ElementaryElementary · 294 students
Other schools in Taylorsville
- Alexander Central HighHigh · 1,254 students
- West Alexander MiddleMiddle · 467 students
- Bethlehem ElementaryElementary · 435 students
- Wittenburg ElementaryElementary · 294 students
- Taylorsville ElementaryElementary · 241 students
- Alexander Early CollegeHigh · 172 students
Nearby schools
- Taylorsville Elementary3.5 mi · 241
- Alexander Central High3.7 mi · 1,254
- Alexander Early College4.2 mi · 172
- East Alexander Middle4.8 mi · 510
- Ellendale Elementary5.7 mi · 168
- Hiddenite Elementary7.2 mi · 370
Frequently asked questions
About Sugar Loaf ElementaryHow large is Sugar Loaf Elementary?
Sugar Loaf Elementary enrolls approximately 196 students in grades KG-05.
Is Sugar Loaf Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Sugar Loaf Elementary is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
How many students per teacher at Sugar Loaf Elementary?
Approximately 16.9:1 students per teacher at Sugar Loaf Elementary.
How diverse is Sugar Loaf Elementary?
Sugar Loaf Elementary reports a student body of 83% White, 3% Hispanic, 6% Black, 1% Asian, 8% Two or more.
Is Sugar Loaf Elementary public or private?
Sugar Loaf Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Alexander County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.