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
Science scores in North Carolina counties dropped 0.6% compared to the previous school year, when 24% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
Statewide, Orange County students stood out in science, with almost 51.3% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (768). Meanwhile, students from Caswell County and Northampton County struggled the most on the science portion, and none were considered ready for college.
Beyond science, 39.5% of North Carolina 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In math, 23.3% of students were ready for college, and reading scores revealed 33% 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 | 17.2% | 16.1% |
| Alexander County | 21.1% | 23.1% |
| Alleghany County | 18.1% | 24.5% |
| Anson County | 3.9% | 4.7% |
| Ashe County | 19.4% | 27.7% |
| Avery County | 24.8% | 21.2% |
| Beaufort County | 19.4% | 16.9% |
| Bertie County | 5.6% | 2.3% |
| Bladen County | 8.7% | 8.5% |
| Brunswick County | 23.2% | 21% |
| Buncombe County | 29% | 30.6% |
| Burke County | 20.1% | 20.3% |
| Cabarrus County | 25.2% | 23.5% |
| Caldwell County | 17.4% | 19.3% |
| Camden County | 29.7% | 28.5% |
| Carteret County | 36.3% | 38.4% |
| Caswell County | 9.9% | 0% |
| Catawba County | 27% | 23.1% |
| Chatham County | 33.9% | 34.4% |
| Cherokee County | 19.3% | 22.1% |
| Chowan County | 12.2% | 11.9% |
| Clay County | 25.6% | 16.1% |
| Cleveland County | 20.8% | 18.8% |
| Columbus County | 9.8% | 8.5% |
| Craven County | 19.4% | 18.8% |
| Cumberland County | 19.2% | 16.7% |
| Currituck County | 29.2% | 20.7% |
| Dare County | 20.7% | 24.2% |
| Davidson County | 17.8% | 18.5% |
| Davie County | 26.7% | 27.2% |
| Duplin County | 9.5% | 7.7% |
| Durham County | 23.4% | 24.6% |
| Edgecombe County | 7.7% | 7.5% |
| Forsyth County | 22.9% | 24.4% |
| Franklin County | 14.5% | 14.8% |
| Gaston County | 18.4% | 20.5% |
| Gates County | 23.1% | 20.7% |
| Graham County | 12.8% | 10.3% |
| Granville County | 15.5% | 19.8% |
| Greene County | 8.4% | 6.5% |
| Guilford County | 20.5% | 19.9% |
| Halifax County | 7.3% | 9.5% |
| Harnett County | 16.2% | 13.8% |
| Haywood County | 26% | 27.7% |
| Henderson County | 24.9% | 23.5% |
| Hertford County | 4.2% | 8.1% |
| Hoke County | 11.9% | 12.8% |
| Hyde County | 6.1% | 3.4% |
| Iredell County | 25.7% | 26.1% |
| Jackson County | 27.2% | 18.5% |
| Johnston County | 21.3% | 18.7% |
| Jones County | 13.2% | 11.8% |
| Lee County | 16.8% | 15.5% |
| Lenoir County | 9.8% | 7.3% |
| Lincoln County | 31% | 28% |
| Macon County | 24.6% | 20.2% |
| Madison County | 24.1% | 18.4% |
| Martin County | 6.3% | 8.3% |
| McDowell County | 19.7% | 14.2% |
| Mecklenburg County | 27.1% | 26.6% |
| Mitchell County | 10.5% | 15.7% |
| Montgomery County | 7.4% | 6.4% |
| Moore County | 28.6% | 27.1% |
| Nash County | 11.4% | 10.3% |
| New Hanover County | 29.6% | 26.8% |
| Northampton County | 3.6% | 0% |
| Onslow County | 18.4% | 18.7% |
| Orange County | 49.3% | 51.3% |
| Pamlico County | 17.1% | 17.3% |
| Pasquotank County | 14.5% | 12.1% |
| Pender County | 26.9% | 27.7% |
| Perquimans County | 20.2% | 13.4% |
| Person County | 15.8% | 19.5% |
| Pitt County | 21% | 19.7% |
| Polk County | 25% | 36.3% |
| Randolph County | 15.3% | 14.3% |
| Richmond County | 10.4% | 8.8% |
| Robeson County | 5.5% | 2.7% |
| Rockingham County | 12.9% | 12.8% |
| Rowan County | 11.9% | 9.6% |
| Rutherford County | 19.6% | 19.7% |
| Sampson County | 15.8% | 12.6% |
| Scotland County | 10.5% | 7.1% |
| Stanly County | 20.9% | 16% |
| Stokes County | 15% | 14.1% |
| Surry County | 24.9% | 23.9% |
| Swain County | 20.6% | 18.6% |
| Transylvania County | 28% | 28% |
| Tyrrell County | 2.9% | 9.1% |
| Union County | 36.3% | 35.7% |
| Vance County | 13.6% | 10.5% |
| Wake County | 37.9% | 37.8% |
| Warren County | 9.6% | 5.2% |
| Washington County | 3.1% | 2.9% |
| Watauga County | 36.2% | 37.4% |
| Wayne County | 14.2% | 12.6% |
| Wilkes County | 17% | 22% |
| Wilson County | 14.4% | 14.4% |
| Yadkin County | 20.3% | 12.5% |
| Yancey County | 25% | 31.5% |
| North Carolina | 24% | 23.4% |
Alerts Sign-up