The top reported proficiency rate is 65% in Science. The lowest is 54% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Brunson Elementary
Brunson Elementary is a small school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Winston-Salem, located on North Hawthorne Road in a pocket of the city that borders Hanes Park. The school enrolls roughly this size for its grade band, with nearly universal free and reduced-price lunch eligibility. The student body is racially mixed, with roughly equal shares of Black and white students, a meaningful Hispanic presence, and small Asian and multiracial populations.
Academic proficiency in math and English language arts is below the midpoint. In the most recent state testing data, proficiency in math stood at roughly half, and in English language arts at slightly higher but still modest levels. Science proficiency was stronger, though notably that assessment underwent a name and cut-score change, so direct year-to-year comparison is not reliable. For a parent considering this school, the reading and math results suggest students here are working with foundational skills that may need close monitoring and support, particularly in the elementary grades where gaps tend to widen if not addressed early. Because Brunson serves only kindergarten through fifth grade, there are no high school completion data.
The school sits in Winston-Salem, a mid-sized North Carolina city that reversed decades of population decline beginning in the early 2000s and now combines a preserved historic downtown with research institutions and adaptive-reuse residential development. The area around Brunson borders Hanes Park, part of a network of greenways and civic anchors that includes the 20-mile Salem Greenway connecting the city to Salem Lake, and the Forsyth County Public Library system. Downtown Winston-Salem, with its Arts District, Fourth Street dining and retail, and the Innovation Quarter repurposed from tobacco warehouses, sits within a short drive, as do major employment centers at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist and Wake Forest University. The city has actively converted historic manufacturing buildings into apartments and lofts, and the County Council adopted a new Downtown Plan in 2023 with a focus on affordable housing growth.
Housing values in the area are moderate relative to national benchmarks and stable year-over-year. Rent is notably low relative to local income, making this an accessible neighborhood for renters. The median household income regionally sits above the national average. Unemployment in the county is near the national average.
The school is part of Winston Salem/Forsyth County Schools, a large urban district. In 2023, Forsyth County commissioners provided additional funding to close a bond-project shortfall without raising property tax rates, which preserved money for Brunson Elementary renovations alongside projects at other schools. The district has adopted a modified academic calendar starting earlier than state statute requires, beginning in August and ending in late May as of 2026-27, a meaningful shift for families planning around summer programs and childcare.
Data on staffing, teacher credentials, special education enrollment, English learner population, attendance, and discipline were not available. A parent considering Brunson may want to request this information directly from the school to understand how academic support is configured and whether specialized services meet their child's needs.
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