Bonaire Elementary School, Bonaire GA

Original Research by School Decision on Bonaire Elementary School

Bonaire Elementary serves grades three through five in an unincorporated, rapidly growing residential community about six miles south of Warner Robins. It is a school of moderate size within a district that has been investing heavily in capacity and new programs to keep pace with the area's growth.

The school's academic performance shows consistent strength in math, where proficiency runs around 70 percent across all three grades. English language arts proficiency sits somewhat lower, ranging from roughly 60 percent in grade three to 65 percent in grade five. Science proficiency in grade five reaches approximately 66 percent. These results place the school solidly in the middle range for elementary math and reading, with no standout strength but no marked weakness either. Because the school serves only grades three through five, state testing does not cover all subject areas or the full K-12 span, so readers should understand that this is a partial picture of student learning at this elementary level.

The school's enrollment is spread evenly across its three grades, with a student body that is majority white and includes a substantial share of Black, multiracial, and Hispanic students. Roughly four in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a moderate level of economic need in the attendance zone. The school's enrollment has remained stable at this size for its grade band.

Bonaire sits in the fastest-growing part of Houston County. The area has more than doubled in population over the past couple of decades and continues to absorb new single-family construction at a steady pace. Major new subdivisions and at least a dozen active builders are bringing homes to the Bonaire corridor along Highway 96 and Highway 231, much of it aimed at families relocating for work at nearby Robins Air Force Base. The housing market has shown modest appreciation and relatively stable rental costs, and the area is broadly affordable relative to state and national benchmarks. A significant EF3 tornado in April 2022 caused damage and displacement, but rebuilding has proceeded.

The community itself is unincorporated and organized around cars rather than walkability or public transit. Schools and civic facilities sit separated from one another along highway corridors. There is no traditional downtown, though nearby Warner Robins provides commercial services and the area benefits from proximity to Robins Air Force Base as an economic anchor. Recreational facilities in and near Bonaire include parks and golf courses, but daily life and commuting are oriented toward the automobile.

At the district level, Houston County Schools has made tax-policy changes and capital investments that affect families considering the area. The school board reduced its property tax millage rate in 2024 to its lowest level in more than a decade and held it steady in 2025, a shift that lowers the annual tax bill for homeowners. Voters have renewed a one-cent sales tax dedicated to education, funding new schools and upgrades; a further renewal was on the November 2025 ballot. The district opened a new primary school in 2023 and is building additional middle-school capacity to handle continued enrollment growth. An ambitious new STEM and Career Academy with dual-enrollment pathways in healthcare, cybersecurity, and engineering is scheduled to open in August 2027, offering families at the high school level a significant new option beyond traditional secondary schools. These investments reflect how directly the district is trying to keep pace with the area's residential boom.

For families considering Bonaire Elementary, the school offers consistent middle-range performance, a stable enrollment, and access to a district that is actively building capacity and new pathways. The community itself is suburban, car-dependent, and growing rapidly, with strong connections to military employment and a family-oriented housing market that continues to expand.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 371%

School 71% · District 47% · ▲ 24 pts above district

▲ 31 pts above state median · ▲ 29 pts above county median

Grade 471%

School 71% · District 52% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 570%

School 70% · District 48% · ▲ 22 pts above district

▲ 32 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 361%

School 61% · District 41% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 461%

School 61% · District 47% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 565%

School 65% · District 52% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Science

Grade 566%

School 66% · District 49% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Social studies

Grades 3-892%

School 92% · district not reported

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

This schoolHouston County, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income55%Higher-income76%21 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income75%39 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income60%Higher-income77%17 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income51%Higher-income76%25 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income62%Higher-income82%20 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income49%Higher-income88%39 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income53%Higher-income75%22 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income54%Higher-income81%27 pp gap