The top reported proficiency rate is 51% in Math. The lowest is 23% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Eastway Elementary
Eastway Elementary serves Pre-K through fifth grade in a North Alston Avenue location in Durham, drawing a student body that is almost entirely economically disadvantaged and racially mixed. The enrollment is small for an elementary school, with grades distributed fairly evenly across the span. Nearly all enrolled students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Racial composition is roughly split between Black and Hispanic students, with a small number of white and multiracial students and a handful of Asian and Native American learners.
In the most recent state testing results available, Eastway's proficiency rates in grades three through five show a school in academic stress. Math proficiency sits just above half, while English language arts proficiency is substantially lower, with fewer than a quarter of tested students meeting state benchmarks. Science proficiency is also notably low. These results paint a picture of a school where many students arrive with significant foundational gaps and where closing those gaps is proving difficult despite instructional effort.
This context matters: Eastway's student population carries the highest economic need burden in its grade band. The school sits in a neighborhood characterized by concentrated poverty, and the vast majority of families are navigating economic hardship. In Durham Public Schools specifically, nearly all students district-wide qualify for free or reduced lunch, reflecting the city's income distribution, but Eastway's rate is at the extreme end even within that district. This is not a reflection on the school's approach or staff commitment; it is an observation about the depth of challenge the school's students and families face when they walk through the door each day.
Parents considering Eastway should know that the school serves a genuinely vulnerable population and that the gap between what the school is delivering now and what students need is real and visible in the testing data. The district has adopted a Science of Reading framework district-wide, with specific daily literacy minimums and curriculum materials aligned to structured phonics instruction. If that change is being implemented at Eastway, it may represent a shift toward stronger foundational reading work, though the testing data available does not yet reflect such a change.
A second layer of context touches the school's future. In 2026, Durham Public Schools began drafting consolidation plans to address nearly a billion dollars in building maintenance costs and declining enrollment. Eastway appears on draft proposal lists to be expanded and to potentially absorb students from a neighboring elementary school. This is a real uncertainty: families enrolling now should be aware that the school's configuration and attendance zone may shift within the next few years.
The school is small enough that teachers likely know families well, and the concentrated economic need in the attendance zone means Eastway may function as an anchor institution in its neighborhood. Housing near North Alston Avenue is typically modest in cost. For families already in the area, or for those seeking a neighborhood school with deep community ties, Eastway is the built-in option. For families with choice, the academic gap between Eastway and higher-performing schools in the Durham district is substantial and worth weighing in light of a child's individual readiness and learning profile.
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