James H. Cary Intermediate

James H. Cary Intermediate operates as a micro-enrollment intermediate school in Tappahannock, Virginia, part of Essex County Public Schools. Current enrollment sits at 299 students spanning grades 5 through 8. Enrollment runs roughly 60% leaner than the state mean of about 750.

James H. Cary Intermediate is one of 3 schools operated by Essex County Public Schools, a district that enrolls 1,092 students overall.

On the student-mix side, James H. Cary Intermediate logs that the largest single group is Black at 53%, but no single group is in the majority. Beyond that, the school records 25% White, 13% multiracial, 7% Hispanic, 2% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 37% Black, putting the school's mix considerably more Black than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, The school currently runs with 27 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 11.1:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.1:1 average. An estimated 100% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), James H. Cary Intermediate tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 61.0% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 55.4%.

Around the school, community-level numbers for Essex County indicate the typical household earns roughly $56,520 per year, roughly 17% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 6%. Across Essex County's 4 public schools (combined enrollment of about 1,092 students), James H. Cary Intermediate is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: Essex High, around 0.4 miles off. 2 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts James H. Cary Intermediate at 7th of 8; the average score across the group is 64.1%.

The school occupies a rural site.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count fell 28%: 413 students in 2018 compared to 299 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share decreased from 31% to 25%. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 12.2:1 in 2018 to 11.1:1 today.

Inside the community feed, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.