The top reported proficiency rate is 62% in English language arts. The lowest is 51% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Nichols Elementary School
Nichols Elementary School sits on Erwin Road in Barboursville, a small village in Cabell County that serves as the primary retail hub for the eastern fringe of the Huntington-Ashland metropolitan area. The school is part of Cabell County Schools and serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. Its enrollment is modest for its grade band, and the student body is overwhelmingly white, with only a handful of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. Free-or-reduced-price lunch data was not available, and figures for special education and English learner populations were missing, so it is hard to read the economic and support picture from what is provided.
On state assessments, Nichols posts solid results. Math proficiency rises sharply from third to fourth grade, with fourth graders performing notably well, before dipping in fifth. ELA results are steadier across the three tested grades, landing in a healthy middle range throughout. Fifth-grade science proficiency sits right around the midpoint. Every tested grade shows full participation, which speaks to a school that keeps students engaged with the testing process. No multi-year trend data was available beyond the current year, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent growth, stability, or decline over time.
Barboursville itself is an interesting mix. The village has a National Register-listed historic district along Main Street, with older homes and a walking trail that passes a pre-Civil War toll house and the West Virginia Veterans Home. A large village park offers sports fields, fishing ponds, walking and equestrian trails, an amphitheater, and a splash pad. At the same time, the dominant commercial presence is substantial. The Huntington Mall, the largest indoor mall in West Virginia, sits along the I-64 and US Route 60 corridor, along with the Merritt's Creek Farm Shopping Center. Major retail developments are planned or underway nearby, including Tanyard Station on a former rail yard and The Crossing, which together will bring more restaurants and shops to the area. Road widening and intersection upgrades are planned to absorb the traffic. The population has been roughly stable, declining only slightly in recent estimates.
For a family looking at housing, the area around Nichols is relatively affordable compared with state and national benchmarks. Home values sit below the state average and well below the national figure, and the price-to-income ratio is moderate. Rent data was not available. The affordability picture may appeal to families buying their first home, though the housing market data does not capture the full rental landscape.
The school's academic results suggest a place where most students are reaching proficiency, particularly in the middle elementary grades. The fourth-grade math and ELA numbers are a clear strength. The fifth-grade dip in math is something a parent may want to look into further with the school, as is the case with any single-year result at one grade level. The lack of demographic detail on economic disadvantage, special education, and English learners leaves a gap in understanding who the school serves and how it supports them. Nichols does not serve grades six through eight, so no middle school test results appear, and the school has no graduation rate because it does not extend to high school.
Families considering Nichols are choosing a small, predominantly white elementary school in a village that blends a quiet historic core with heavy retail activity. The surrounding community is growing commercially, and the park system is a genuine civic asset. The academic program appears to be doing right by most of its students, with particularly strong mid-elementary performance. Where the data is thin, a conversation with the school can fill in what the numbers do not show.
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