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Alumni: what's one memory from Ghent K-8 that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
501
Elementary
DISTRICT 435 · STATE 499
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NORFOLK CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 510267001096
Ghent K-8
200 Shirley Ave, Norfolk, VA 23517 · (757) 628-2565 · Norfolk city
GRADES KG–08ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL501 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.9:1
36 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.6:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
498 students
DISTRICT 99% · STATE 66%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
SOL 2024-25 . % PassingEnglish Language Arts
80.0%
VA avg 74.2% . +1.0pp since 2022
Math
74.0%
VA avg 72.7% . -3.0pp since 2022
What this means: On the SOL, Virginia's statewide test, about 80 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 74 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Virginia schools, those numbers are about 74 and 73. Reading and writing scores are up about 1 points since 2022, while math scores are down about 3 points.
Source: SOL. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of VA schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
84.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
61.0%
based on VA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+23.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 84% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 61% typical for Virginia 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 23 points, placing it in Virginia'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 →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
501
-12 (-2%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
13.9:1
was 13.7:1
% White
43%
was 43%
% Hispanic
6%
was 3%
% Black
43%
was 43%
% Asian
1%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About Ghent K-8
Ghent K-8 is a middle-of-the-pack primary school in Norfolk, Virginia, operated by Norfolk City Public Schools. The school enrolls 501 students in grades K through 8.
Norfolk City Public Schools comprises 44 schools with combined enrollment of 26,807 students; Ghent K-8 is among them.
Looking at the student body, Ghent K-8 shows that the largest single group is Black at 43%, but no single group is in the majority. The remainder consists of 43% White, 8% multiracial, 6% Hispanic. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.
On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 36 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 13.9:1 students per teacher. That tracks the state average closely. Roughly 99% of students at Ghent K-8 qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.
On a demographically-adjusted basis, Ghent K-8 is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 61.0%; this one delivers 84.1%, a residual of +23.1 points.
Around the school, ACS estimates for Norfolk city put median household earnings sit near $66,109, about 34% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 12%. Ghent K-8 is one of 54 public schools in Norfolk city (combined enrollment of about 26,807 students).
Nearest neighbor: Matthew Fontaine Maury High, around 0.2 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Ghent K-8 ranks 1st on composite proficiency, higher than the local average of 53.0%.
The campus sits in a high-density setting.
Trend over the last 7 years. Ghent K-8's enrollment has showed little movement since 2018, when it stood at 513 (now 501).
In the discussion threads here, the feed for Ghent K-8 typically covers sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Norfolk city at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
233,596
Census ACS
Median income
$66,109
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
34%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
12%
Below federal line
Schools in county
54
26,807 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Norfolk City Public Schools
- Granby HighHigh · 1,980 students
- Matthew Fontaine Maury HighHigh · 1,713 students
- Norview HighHigh · 1,585 students
- Norview MiddleMiddle · 1,196 students
- Blair MiddleMiddle · 1,141 students
- Lake Taylor HighHigh · 1,107 students
Other schools in Norfolk
- Granby HighHigh · 1,980 students
- Matthew Fontaine Maury HighHigh · 1,713 students
- Norview HighHigh · 1,585 students
- Norview MiddleMiddle · 1,196 students
- Blair MiddleMiddle · 1,141 students
- Lake Taylor HighHigh · 1,107 students
Nearby schools
- Matthew Fontaine Maury High0.2 mi · 1,713
- Blair Middle0.5 mi · 1,141
- P.B. Young Sr. Elementary0.7 mi · 241
- James Monroe Elementary0.8 mi · 299
- Walter Herron Taylor Elementary1.0 mi · 403
- Lindenwood Elementary1.0 mi · 243
Frequently asked questions
About Ghent K-8How large is Ghent K-8?
Ghent K-8 enrolls approximately 501 students in grades KG-08.
What age range does Ghent K-8 serve?
Ghent K-8 serves students from grade KG through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at Ghent K-8?
Approximately 13.9:1 students per teacher at Ghent K-8.
How diverse is Ghent K-8?
Ghent K-8 reports a student body of 43% White, 6% Hispanic, 43% Black, 1% Asian, 8% Two or more.
Who oversees Ghent K-8?
Ghent K-8 is overseen by Norfolk City Public Schools in Norfolk city.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.