The top reported proficiency rate is 81% in Science. The lowest is 63% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Union Elementary
Union Elementary sits in Shallotte, a small Brunswick County town anchored by retail corridors and a riverfront that is undergoing rapid commercial and residential growth. The town functions as a mixed retail hub and gateway to the South Brunswick Islands, with a notably large retiree population and an auto-oriented landscape centered on US 17. Much of the town's civic life has begun coalescing around the recently completed Shallotte Riverwalk and planned downtown park extensions, while major residential subdivisions and retail additions like Starbucks, Hobby Lobby, and Marshalls are reshaping the commercial landscape. The local employment base runs heavily toward retail trade, healthcare, and construction.
Union Elementary itself is a small school serving about six hundred students from kindergarten through fifth grade. The student body is majority white, with a substantial Latino population and smaller populations of Black, multiracial, and Asian students. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic profile of the families the school serves.
On state assessments administered in the most recent school year, Union Elementary's performance showed uneven ground. In mathematics, a substantial majority of third- through fifth-graders scored at proficient or higher levels. Science proficiency was notably strong. English language arts proficiency, however, trailed behind the other two subjects, with considerably fewer students reaching proficiency in reading and writing, a gap that a parent may want to look into further with the school when considering this setting. State testing data was not available for the lower elementary grades, and the science assessment underwent changes in the current year that affect trend comparability.
The school is part of Brunswick County Schools, a district in one of North Carolina's fastest-growing counties. Brunswick County is under substantial growth pressure. Elementary schools are already operating at high capacity, and district projections show all schools exceeding capacity within the next several years. This capacity crunch will come to a head in November 2026, when voters decide whether to approve a substantial school bond referendum to build new elementary and high schools and renovate existing facilities. If the referendum fails, the district does not plan another ballot measure until 2028. For any family considering a move into or within the county, that referendum outcome will directly shape class sizes, attendance zones, and property tax bills for the next decade.
At the instructional level, the district recently adopted a 2024-2029 strategic plan committing to common core curricula across all state-tested K-12 subjects and a substantial expansion of work-based learning partnerships with community college and the UNC System. The district also halted a planned shift to standards-based grading after parent and teacher backlash in 2022, preserving the conventional grading scale families rely on for honor roll, GPA tracking, and college applications. These moves signal a district balancing growth pressures with stakeholder input on how school changes unfold.
Union Elementary's position within the county's four-district universe could not be compared against other district schools due to data limitations at the school level, so families should ask the school directly about how it compares to other elementary schools in the county on academic outcomes and programming. The housing market around Shallotte remains affordable relative to state and national benchmarks, though home values are rising modestly year-over-year and rents continue to climb. For families prioritizing an established small school with strong science grounding, Union Elementary may fit, provided they are willing to address the reading and math performance picture with the school leadership and understand the larger growth and capacity dynamics that will shape the local school environment over the coming years.
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