The top reported proficiency rate is 65% in Math. The lowest is 49% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Winter Park Model Elementary
Winter Park Model Elementary is a small school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Wilmington with an enrollment of about three hundred students. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is racially mixed, with about half white, close to a third Hispanic, and a smaller share Black and Asian. The school sits within New Hanover County Schools, a district serving the greater Wilmington area during a period of rapid regional growth and considerable infrastructure change.
The state testing data available from the 2024-25 school year covers grades three through five. In mathematics, just under two-thirds of tested students scored at proficiency or above. In science, proficiency was similar. Reading and language arts present a softer picture: less than half of tested students met proficiency. This gap between math and reading is worth noting, and a parent may want to ask the school directly about literacy instruction and any targeted supports in place.
Wilmington itself is a mid-sized coastal city with a genuine downtown along the Cape Fear River, a working waterfront, and a mix of restored Victorian housing and newer residential development. The area is experiencing sustained growth, with the metro ranked ninth nationally for population growth. That expansion is pushing median home values upward and affordability challenges are now a top resident concern. Within the city, new master-planned communities like Riverlights between downtown and Carolina Beach are rising alongside infill downtown projects. The broader region anchors itself on Novant Health as the largest employer, UNCW as a major educational and civic presence, and a growing fintech sector led by publicly traded nCino.
The district is in the midst of significant change. A school facilities bond referendum is slated for November 2026 that would fund replacement of two schools and a new elementary school in the Riverlights master-planned community, along with work at the high school. If approved with local endowment support, the bond would reshape facilities across the district. The board has also voted to weave the history of the Freeman family and the historic Seabreeze Resort, a Black-owned beach resort that operated during Jim Crow, into the curriculum with live oral history recordings, embedding local African American heritage into what students learn.
Winter Park serves a high-need population with very limited household resources. The school operates within a school type classified as regular public, meaning it does not carry magnet or charter designation and is not structured as an alternative program. State testing results show solid performance in math and science and notably weaker proficiency in reading, which may warrant direct conversation with the school about how it approaches literacy instruction and whether additional support exists for students working below grade level. The school's small size within an early-grade band means it does not have a graduation rate or secondary academic data. A parent considering this school would benefit from a visit to observe classroom dynamics and to ask about reading support, classroom composition, the school's approach to student engagement, and how families connect with staff.
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