Enrollment
342
Elementary
DISTRICT 411 · STATE 467
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LINCOLN COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370268001123
Union Elementary
4875 Reepsville Rd, Vale, NC 28168 · (704) 276-1493 · Lincoln County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL342 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 86% of North Carolina public elementary schools
- A-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
15.3:1
22 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.3:1 · STATE 14.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
339 students
DISTRICT 76% · 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 | 21 | 6% |
| Kindergarten | 50 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 50 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 52 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 64 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 46 | 13% |
| Grade 5 | 59 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (50) is 15% smaller than its 5th grade class (59).
Student demographics
17%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 46% · 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
55.2%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
75.0%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 55 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 75 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
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of NC schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
67.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.6%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+19.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 68% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 49% typical for North Carolina schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 19 points, placing it in North Carolina's top 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 Union Elementary
Union Elementary's state test result (67.7% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union Elementary this school | 342 | 99.1% | 67.7% |
| Brush Creek Elementary Marshall | 356 | 99.2% | 54.1% |
| Collettsville School Collettsville | 321 | 98.8% | 53.3% |
| Mount Olive Elementary School King | 316 | 99.1% | 71.2% |
| North Brook Elementary Vale | 344 | 99.1% | 62.7% |
| Denton Elementary Denton | 369 | 99.2% | 56.9% |
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 Union Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina | In Lincoln County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 67.7% | #282 of 1,297 | #5 of 12 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 75.0% | #214 of 1,296 | #6 of 12 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 55.2% | #451 of 1,300 | #5 of 12 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 342 | #1,074 of 1,485 | #9 of 13 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.3:1 | #829 of 1,377 | #9 of 13 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 17.5% | #1,362 of 1,379 | #13 of 13 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.1% | #572 of 1,414 | #3 of 13 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +27.6% | #71 of 369 | #2 of 7 |
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
342
+50 (+17%) vs 2020
-15% since 1990-91, when it was 404
Student : Teacher
15.3:1
was 14.6:1
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 | 342 | 22.4 | 15.3:1 | 99% (339) |
| 2023-24 | 323 | 22.6 | 14.3:1 | 99% (320) |
| 2022-23 | 323 | 22.8 | 14.2:1 | 55% (179) |
| 2020-21 | 292 | 20 | 14.6:1 | 50% (147) |
| 2017-18 | 268 | 18.1 | 14.8:1 | 54% (145) |
| 2015-16 | 264 | 19 | 13.9:1 | 54% (143) |
| 2010-11 | 308 | 22 | 14.0:1 | 57% (175) |
| 2000-01 | 640 | 29 | 22.1:1 | 30% (190) |
| 1990-91 | 404 | 22 | 18.4:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Union Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students up 28% (268 to 342); teachers up 24% (18.1 to 22.4).
About Union Elementary
Union Elementary serves students in Vale, North Carolina, as a small elementary school. It educates 342 students in pre-K through 5. The school's enrollment is 27% smaller than the 467 average for elementary schools in North Carolina.
The Lincoln County Schools system has 22 schools and 11,710 students.
About 91% of the student body at Union Elementary is White. Smaller groups are 4% Hispanic and 4% multiracial. Union Elementary's diversity index is 17%, against a US figure of 70%.
The school employs the equivalent of 22.4 full-time teachers, for a ratio of 15.3:1. That matches the 14.9:1 average for elementary schools in North Carolina fairly closely. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 99%. Public schools in Lincoln County average 66%.
Measured against North Carolina public elementary schools, Union 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.
On BeatsExpectations, which compares test results with what a school's student poverty level would predict, Union Elementary ranks in the top 10% in North Carolina. Its average proficiency rate on state tests is 67.7%, against a prediction of 48.6%.
Lincoln County has about 92,716 residents, and the median household income is $80,016, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 28% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 9%. In all, Lincoln County has 25 public schools and roughly 14,428 students.
Nearest public school: West Lincoln High, about 2.5 miles away. Within five miles are 3 other public schools. On average proficiency, Union Elementary is 1st of 9 nearby schools with test data.
NCES describes the area around Union Elementary as Rural: Distant, meaning in rural territory some distance from an urban area.
The school enrolled 342 students in 2024-25, 50 more than the 292 it had in 2020-21.
Discussions about Union Elementary may include science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Lincoln County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
92,716
Census ACS
Median income
$80,016
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
28%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
25
14,428 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Lincoln County Schools
- North Lincoln HighHigh · 1,126 students
- East Lincoln HighHigh · 1,047 students
- Lincolnton HighHigh · 797 students
- North Lincoln MiddleMiddle · 774 students
- East Lincoln MiddleMiddle · 738 students
- West Lincoln HighHigh · 731 students
Other schools in Vale
- North Brook ElementaryElementary · 344 students
- Banoak ElementaryElementary · 291 students
Other Union Elementary schools
25 other US public schools in 14 states are named Union Elementary. Union Elementary is the 14th largest of the 26.
- Union ElementaryShallotte, NC · 654 students
- Union ElementaryClinton, NC · 466 students
- Union ElementaryShelby, NC · 413 students
- Union ElementaryRowland, NC · 351 students
- Union ElementaryWingate, NC · 296 students
Nearby schools
- West Lincoln High2.5 mi · 731
- West Lincoln Middle2.6 mi · 563
- Childers Elementary3.8 mi · 418
- North Brook Elementary5.1 mi · 344
- Banoak Elementary5.2 mi · 291
- Lincolnton Middle5.8 mi · 563
Frequently asked questions
About Union ElementaryHow many students attend Union Elementary?
Union Elementary enrolls approximately 342 students in grades PK-05.
Is Union Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Union Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many students per teacher at Union Elementary?
Approximately 15.3:1 students per teacher at Union Elementary.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Union Elementary?
At Union Elementary, the student body is approximately 91% White, 4% Hispanic, 1% Black, 0% Asian, 4% Two or more.
What district is Union Elementary in?
Union Elementary is part of Lincoln County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.