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Suffolk City Public Schools · Elementary School · Grades PK-5

Southwestern Elementary

Formerly Pioneer Elementary

150 Pioneer Road, Suffolk, VA 23437 · Home of the Mustang

✓ Fully Accredited · 2025-2026
This year · 2025–26
6.3/10
Around state average
Last year · 2024–25
4.8/10
Around state average
▲ Up 1.5 from 2024–25
VaHome School Score

Rating: VaHome School Score, computed from Virginia Department of Education data (2025–26) — methodology on this page. Profile data: NCES & Virginia DOE. School boundaries can change — verify zoning with the district before relying on it.

Southwestern Elementary phone, mascot & school colors

Phone
(757) 925-5782
Mascot
Mustang
School colors
Purple, White
Principal
Lori S. Mounie
Address
150 Pioneer Road, Suffolk, VA 23437
Official school website ↗

Score breakdown

Compared against all 1,074 Virginia public elementary schools. 1–4 is below the state average, 5–6 around it, 7–10 above it.

7.1 · Test scores

SOL pass rate of 79.7% across all subjects — 68th percentile statewide.

7.6 · Academic progress

85% of students showed growth in reading and 91% in math — 73th percentile.

2.3 · Attendance

Chronic absenteeism of 15.1% — better attendance than 14% of peers statewide.

Year over year: 6.3 for 2025–26, compared with 4.8 for 2024–25 — up 1.5.

Test scores by subject

Percent of students passing Virginia SOL tests, 2025–26.

This school Virginia average
Grade 5 Science
81%state 69%
Virginia Studies
86%state 71%
Grade 3 Mathematics
72%state 74%
Grade 4 Mathematics
82%state 73%
Grade 5 Mathematics
93%state 72%
Grade 3 English Reading
63%state 68%
Grade 4 English Reading
87%state 74%
Grade 5 English Reading
78%state 73%

Source: Virginia Department of Education, School Quality Profiles — SOL pass rates, 2025–26.

Southwestern Elementary & its school zone

A public elementary school in Suffolk Public Schools, Southwestern Elementary School anchors its attendance zone in Suffolk, VA 23437. Buyers searching homes for sale near Southwestern Elementary School are shopping this Suffolk school zone, one of the areas families compare when weighing Suffolk elementary school zones. On the VaHome School Score the school earns 6.3/10 — around the state average among Virginia's 1,074 public elementary schools, based on Virginia Department of Education data for 2025–26. That is up from 4.8 in 2024–25.

The school's overall SOL pass rate is 79.7%, with standout results in Grade 5 Mathematics (93% vs a 72% state average) and Virginia Studies (86% vs a 71% state average). On Virginia's 2025–26 growth measures, 85% of students showed growth in English reading and 91% in math. Chronic absenteeism is 15.1%, compared with the 9.0% state median for elementary schools.

For house hunters comparing Suffolk school zones, the listings on this page show active REIN MLS homes near Southwestern Elementary School. School zoning and attendance boundaries can change between school years — always verify a specific address's assignment directly with Suffolk Public Schools before making a housing decision based on school zone.

How the VaHome School Score works

  • Test scores (50%): the school's SOL pass rate across all subjects, ranked against every Virginia public school of the same level.
  • Academic progress (30%): Virginia's growth rates — the share of students who showed year-over-year growth in English reading and in math — ranked statewide.
  • Attendance (20%): chronic absenteeism, ranked statewide (lower is better).
  • What changed for 2025–26: Virginia retired the accreditation “combined rate” we used for academic progress in 2024–25, so progress now uses the state's student growth rates. Virginia publishes no growth measure for high schools, so their 20% now goes to attendance. The year-over-year comparison at the top uses the score we published for 2024–25; part of a school's change can come from this method update.
  • The weighted statewide percentile maps to a score from 1.0 to 10.0: score = 1 + 9 × percentile. 1–4 is below the state average, 5–6 around it, 7–10 above it.
  • Every input is public data from the Virginia Department of Education, refreshed each school year. No opinions, no black box — you can check our math.

Data: Virginia Department of Education School Quality Profiles (2025–26) · NCES. VaHome is not affiliated with VDOE, NCES, or GreatSchools.

At a glance

School district
Suffolk City Public Schools
Grades served
PK-5
School type
Public
Established
1924
Enrollment
571 students (2025-2026)
Student–teacher ratio
19:1
Classroom teachers
31 FTE
Accreditation
Fully Accredited (2025-2026)
NCES school ID
510371001629
Former name
Pioneer Elementary

Academic performance

SOL pass rates · 2025-2026
Reading
76%
Mathematics
81%
Science
81%
History & Social Sci.
86%

Attendance

2025-2026
Consistent attenders
84.9%

15.1% of students were chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days).

About Southwestern Elementary

The school at 150 Pioneer Road in Suffolk, Virginia, operated for years as Pioneer Elementary School before the Suffolk School Board voted 4-3 in December 2020 to rename it Southwestern Elementary School, effective July 1, 2021. The change restored the historic 'Southwestern' name and recognized the site's role in educating Black students in rural southwestern Suffolk. Education on the site traces to 1924, when the Nansemond County Training School was built with seed funding tied to Sears, Roebuck and Co. leader Julius Rosenwald, whose fund financed schools for Black students across the rural South.

The school sits in a rural, distant section of southwestern Suffolk off U.S. Route 58 and Pioneer Road, and is one of the elementary schools operated by Suffolk City Public Schools. It serves students from pre-kindergarten through grade 5, with a mascot of the Mustang and school colors of purple and white.

Data sources

Figures reflect the 2025-2026 (Virginia DOE SOL, attendance, enrollment); 2024-2025 (NCES staffing); accreditation SY2025-2026 unless noted. School zoning, boundaries, and ratings change — verify with the school division before making housing decisions.

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