NC Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt 2023 | North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
NC Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt 2023 | North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
English scores in North Carolina counties rose 1.3% compared to the previous school year, when 38.2% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
Statewide, Orange County students stood out in English, with almost 64.8% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (971). Meanwhile, students from Tyrrell County struggled the most on the English portion, and only 6.1% were considered ready for college.
Beyond English, 23.3% of North Carolina 11th-graders met math college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 33% of students were ready for college, and science scores revealed 23.4% of juniors also met the standard.
North Carolina's education system is still grappling with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the 2022-23 ACT results, college readiness among North Carolina students falls short of pre-pandemic levels, with only 17.1% meeting benchmarks.
Additionally, the state's performance is lagging behind the national average, which currently stands at 21%.
| County | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2021-22) | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2022-23) |
|---|---|---|
| Alamance County | 27% | 29.3% |
| Alexander County | 36.4% | 34.2% |
| Alleghany County | 38.3% | 41.5% |
| Anson County | 12.8% | 18.1% |
| Ashe County | 38.7% | 47.9% |
| Avery County | 34.5% | 34.7% |
| Beaufort County | 30.3% | 28.8% |
| Bertie County | 21.3% | 15% |
| Bladen County | 22.4% | 18.3% |
| Brunswick County | 32.9% | 34.2% |
| Buncombe County | 44.3% | 47.3% |
| Burke County | 41.5% | 39.3% |
| Cabarrus County | 39.3% | 38.3% |
| Caldwell County | 31.2% | 35.5% |
| Camden County | 41.5% | 47.7% |
| Carteret County | 55.8% | 59.3% |
| Caswell County | 28.4% | 13.1% |
| Catawba County | 38.1% | 38.1% |
| Chatham County | 53.5% | 51% |
| Cherokee County | 46.3% | 44.2% |
| Chowan County | 20% | 29.7% |
| Clay County | 36.6% | 32.2% |
| Cleveland County | 35.3% | 36% |
| Columbus County | 21.1% | 19.2% |
| Craven County | 37.4% | 33.6% |
| Cumberland County | 32.8% | 34.2% |
| Currituck County | 50.2% | 48.2% |
| Dare County | 45.6% | 49% |
| Davidson County | 34.4% | 38.7% |
| Davie County | 44.7% | 44.5% |
| Duplin County | 22.4% | 20.4% |
| Durham County | 39.5% | 41.4% |
| Edgecombe County | 16.5% | 17.4% |
| Forsyth County | 36% | 36.8% |
| Franklin County | 30.7% | 28.5% |
| Gaston County | 30.1% | 34.8% |
| Gates County | 30.8% | 33.6% |
| Graham County | 25.6% | 25% |
| Granville County | 29.1% | 35.4% |
| Greene County | 18.5% | 16.8% |
| Guilford County | 33.3% | 33.9% |
| Halifax County | 15.2% | 21.7% |
| Harnett County | 34.1% | 32.3% |
| Haywood County | 50.1% | 38.8% |
| Henderson County | 36.5% | 41.8% |
| Hertford County | 7.8% | 15% |
| Hoke County | 30.3% | 30.6% |
| Hyde County | 21.2% | 34.5% |
| Iredell County | 38.5% | 37.9% |
| Jackson County | 34.7% | 43.2% |
| Johnston County | 31.9% | 35.8% |
| Jones County | 22.1% | 31.4% |
| Lee County | 32.4% | 33.6% |
| Lenoir County | 20% | 14.6% |
| Lincoln County | 46.9% | 47.9% |
| Macon County | 39.1% | 38.7% |
| Madison County | 32.8% | 44.3% |
| Martin County | 20% | 25.3% |
| McDowell County | 39% | 29.5% |
| Mecklenburg County | 43.1% | 44.1% |
| Mitchell County | 24.8% | 40.2% |
| Montgomery County | 27.7% | 26.1% |
| Moore County | 41% | 44.6% |
| Nash County | 20.1% | 18.8% |
| New Hanover County | 51.5% | 49.8% |
| Northampton County | 9.3% | 6.6% |
| Onslow County | 38.4% | 36.3% |
| Orange County | 61.5% | 64.8% |
| Pamlico County | 25.6% | 35.6% |
| Pasquotank County | 29.4% | 26.5% |
| Pender County | 47.6% | 44.7% |
| Perquimans County | 30.3% | 25.8% |
| Person County | 38.8% | 36.6% |
| Pitt County | 32% | 35.1% |
| Polk County | 40.7% | 51.1% |
| Randolph County | 25.3% | 26.6% |
| Richmond County | 21.8% | 25.1% |
| Robeson County | 13.4% | 12.2% |
| Rockingham County | 28.1% | 27.7% |
| Rowan County | 24.5% | 23.4% |
| Rutherford County | 40.3% | 43.8% |
| Sampson County | 25.7% | 24% |
| Scotland County | 22.1% | 19.3% |
| Stanly County | 39.2% | 35.8% |
| Stokes County | 31.3% | 35.4% |
| Surry County | 44.8% | 42% |
| Swain County | 39% | 40.2% |
| Transylvania County | 50.3% | 43.1% |
| Tyrrell County | 14.3% | 6.1% |
| Union County | 51.9% | 52.9% |
| Vance County | 29.1% | 28.4% |
| Wake County | 50.8% | 55.5% |
| Warren County | 14.9% | 19.4% |
| Washington County | 14.1% | 23.5% |
| Watauga County | 53% | 56.2% |
| Wayne County | 24.1% | 24.5% |
| Wilkes County | 28.9% | 36.3% |
| Wilson County | 28.1% | 31.9% |
| Yadkin County | 37.7% | 28.3% |
| Yancey County | 45.7% | 51.2% |
| North Carolina | 38.2% | 39.5% |
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