Westside Elementary

As a mid-tier elementary campus in Roanoke, Virginia, Westside Elementary instructs 624 students from grades pre-K through 5, one of the schools within Roanoke City Public Schools. Enrollment runs roughly 25% above the state mean of about 499.

Across the 24 schools in Roanoke City Public Schools (13,811 students total), Westside Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On the student-mix side, Westside Elementary records that the most-represented group is Black (55%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest looks like 24% Hispanic, 11% White, 8% multiracial. That is visibly more Black than the county at large, where the share is closer to 28%.

In terms of school funding signals, Westside Elementary shows 54 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 11.5:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.8:1 average. Around 99% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Westside Elementary is in the bottom 10% of Virginia public schools. The BeatsExpectations model predicts schools with this FRL share to land around 61.2%; Westside Elementary posts 42.0%, -19.2 points below that line.

Around the school, the surrounding county (Roanoke city) records that the typical household earns roughly $55,378 per year, roughly 30% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 14%. In all, Roanoke city runs 30 public schools (combined enrollment of about 14,392 students), of which Westside Elementary is one.

Nearest neighbor: William Fleming High, around 0.9 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Westside Elementary at 8th of 9; the average score across the group is 60.1%.

The school occupies a downtown site.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count fell 17%: 756 students in 2018 compared to 624 in 2025. Over the same period, the Black share fell from 72% to 55%. Class-load math has pulled in: from 18.0:1 in 2018 to 11.5:1 in 2025.

On allk12, the feed for Westside Elementary typically covers enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.