St. Stephen Lutheran School
2304 Springs Rd Ne, Hickory, NC 28601Open, per Google (checked Sep 20, 2026)
Key facts
- Tuition
- On the school’s website
- Grades
- PreK-8
- Students (K-12)
- 183
- Students per teacher
- 14
- Affiliation
- Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod)
- From Hickory center
- 1.9 miles
Can you use Opportunity Scholarship here?
✓ On the official North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship list
- State list
- Includes this school
- Applying
- The 2026-27 priority window ran February 2 to March 2, 2026. Expect early February again.
Source: the official list, read October 26, 2026.
What you would pay here
- Net cost
- Not worked out: no verified 2026-27 tuition yet. See the school’s tuition page
School facts
- Teachers
- 14
- Student body
- Coeducational
- Boys and girls
- 50% boys, 50% girls
- Setting
- City
- School facts, kindergarten to grade 12: U.S. Department of Education, NCES Private School Survey 2023-24, read September 20, 2026.
Where this comes from. Something wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.
Students and school year
Enrollment over time
- 2019-20 to 2023-24
- 124 to 183, up 59 (48%)
- Path
- Peaked at 200 in 2021-22
Students by grade, 2023-24 (pre-K is not in the K-12 count)
- Largest grade
- Kindergarten and grade 6 (25 each)
- Smallest grade
- Grade 7 (10)
- Average a grade
- About 20
The school year
- Days in the school year
- 180
- Length of the school day
- 6 hours 55 minutes
- Hours of school a year
- about 1,250
- Kindergarten
- Full day, 5 days a week
- Library or media center
- Yes
- Year, against North Carolina
- Same as the median of the 555 private schools we list
- School day, against North Carolina
- About the median of 7 hours (564 schools we list)
How it compares
- Students per teacher
- 14 here; median 8.8 at 175 NC elementary schools
- Size in Catawba County
- Larger than 4 of 7 other schools we list
Student body, 2023-24
Shares of K-12 students by race and ethnicity, as NCES reports them.
- Grades, school year and student body: U.S. Department of Education, NCES Private School Survey 2023-24, read September 20, 2026.
- Earlier counts: NCES Private School Survey 2019-20 and 2021-22, read October 14, 2026.
- Comparisons: the private schools ChoiceFunded lists, as of this page’s last update.
St. Stephen Lutheran School tuition, and what Opportunity Scholarship pays
- Published tuition
- On the school’s own tuition page (found October 11, 2026)
- Nearby schools’ prices
- $7,050 to $14,000 a year, published by 3 private schools nearby. School by school
North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship Scholarship
- Award
- $3,574 to $7,942 per student, by household income
- How it varies
- Four income tiers. A family of four earning up to $61,050 gets the top amount. Students with disabilities can also use ESA+.
Figures read from each program’s official pages, October 2, 2026. Sources and how to apply
What would you pay at St. Stephen Lutheran School?
Use $0 or more.
Tuition and fees Opportunity Scholarship pays You pay per year Spread over 10 months
- Ask the school
- Its full-year tuition and required fees; whether it still takes Opportunity Scholarship for 2026-27; its application deadline. More questions to ask
Tuition at nearby private schools
| School | Published tuition | Year | Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hickory Day School | $12,500 to $14,000 | 2026-27 | 0.8 |
| University Christian High School | $13,325 | 2026-27 | 2.1 |
| Christian Family Academy | $7,050 | 2026-27 | 4.9 |
Each figure was read on that school's own website. Ranges run from the lowest to the highest grade band.
Other private schools nearby
| School | Grades | Students | Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hickory Day School ✓ | On the state list; not in the federal survey | <1 | |
| Tabernacle Christian School ✓ | PreK-12 | 389 | 2 |
| University Christian High School ✓ | 9-12 | 151 | 2 |
| Cornerstone Christian Academy ✓ | 3-11 | 29 | 3 |
| Tree of Life Christian Academy ✓ | On the state list; not in the federal survey | 4 | |
| Hickory Christian Academy ✓ | PreK-12 | 529 | 4 |
| Johnston Wh Elementary School ✓ | K-8 | 22 | 5 |
| Christian Family Academy ✓ | On the state list; not in the federal survey | 5 | |
On the program’s official list Other private schools
Keep looking
- All private schools near Hickory
- Christian schools in North Carolina
- Private elementary schools in North Carolina
- Private middle schools in North Carolina
- Private schools with kindergarten in North Carolina
- Private schools with pre-K in North Carolina
- Lutheran schools in North Carolina
- Private schools in Catawba County
- North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship: amount and eligibility
- All North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship schools
No new Opportunity Scholarship application dates are posted yet. How Opportunity Scholarship works.
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