Public Schools
Including nationally-recognized and Virginia-award-winning public school systems, students in grades K-12 are well-supported in the Middle Peninsula region. Additionally, Governor's Schools and STEM Academies provide high-ability students from the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck with a rigorous curriculum through enrichment, exploratory, investigative, and career awareness experiences in the fields of Marine and Environmental Science, Health Sciences, Agriculture, Maritime Studies, Science and Technology.
| Elementary | Middle School | High School | Total | |
| Essex | ||||
| # of Schools | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 383 | 408 | 529 | 1,320 |
| Gloucester | ||||
| # of Schools | 5 | 2 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 2,430 | 1,187 | 1,689 | 5,306 |
| King & Queen | ||||
| # of Schools | 2* | 2* | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 627 | 627* | 206 | 833 |
| King William | ||||
| # of Schools | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 920 | 535 | 733 | 2,227 |
| Mathews | ||||
| # of Schools | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 354 | 324 | 330 | 1,008 |
| Middlesex | ||||
| # of Schools | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 594 | 258 | 356 | 1,208 |
| West Point | ||||
| # of Schools | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Enrollment | 328 | 474** | 474** | 802 |
* - King & Queen Elementary and Middle Schools are combined
** West Point Middle and High Schools are combined
Source: Virginia Department of Education, 2019-2020 Enrollment
Student Teacher Ratio (2018)
| Community | Elementary | Secondary | Per-Pupil Expenditure | On-Time Graduation Rate |
| Essex | 11:01 | 10:01 | $13,359 | 90.3% |
| Gloucester | 12:01 | 15:01 | $10,975 | 92.7% |
| King & Queen | 14:01 | 8:01 | $13,065 | 94.1% |
| King William | 12:01 | 12:01 | $11,620 | 94.8% |
| Mathews | 12:01 | 9:01 | $12,857 | 90.4% |
| Middlesex | 13:01 | 10:01 | $11,319 | 96.9% |
| West Point | 8:01 | 9:01 | $12,484 | 96.9% |
Source: Virginia Department of Education, Fiscal Year 2019
Governor's Schools and STEM Academies
| Institution | Website |
| Governor's Schools | |
| Chesapeake Bay Governor's Schools for Marine & Environmental Science | Website |
| New Horizons Governor's School for Science & Technology | Website |
| Governor's STEM Academies | |
| Northern Neck Technical Center Governor's STEM Academy for Agriculture and Maritime Studies | Website |
| The Bridging Communities Governor's STEM Academy | Website |
| Gloucester County Public Schools & Mathews County Public Schools Governor's Health Sciences Academy | Website |
Awards
- West Point Public Schools earned the 2016 and 2017 Board of Education Excellence Award as well as the 2018 Board of Education Distinguished Achievement Award. West Point Elementary School earned the 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award, which has been awarded to West Point Middle Schools in 2016, 2017, and 2018. West Point High School earned the 2018 Board of Education Excellence Award.
- Gloucester County's Achilles Elementary and Gloucester High School earned the Virginia Purple Star Award for meeting the needs of military children and families in 2018. Achilles Elementary, Bethel Elementary and Botetourt Elementary also earned the 2016 Board of Education Distinguished Achievement Award.
- Jennifer (Jenn) Horsley Worrell, a fourth-grade language arts teacher at Petsworth Elementary in Gloucester County was named regional teacher of the year in 2015.