Top Rankings
Mcdowell County Schools ranks among the top 20% of public school district in North Carolina for:
Category
Attribute
Community Size
Largest student body (number of students) (Top 1%)
For the 2026 school year, there are 4 public middle schools serving 1,165 students in Mcdowell County Schools. This district's average middle testing ranking is 5/10, which is in the bottom 50% of public middle schools in North Carolina.
Public Middle Schools in Mcdowell County Schools have an average math proficiency score of 49% (versus the North Carolina public middle school average of 48%), and reading proficiency score of 47% (versus the 50% statewide average).
Minority enrollment is 25% of the student body (majority Hispanic), which is less than the North Carolina public middle school average of 57% (majority Black and Hispanic).
Overview
This School District
This State (NC)
# Schools
15 Schools
875 Schools
# Students
5,545 Students
497,279 Students
# Teachers
374 Teachers
31,075 Teachers
Student-Teacher Ratio
15:1
15:1
Student By Grade
District Rank
Mcdowell County Schools, which is ranked within the bottom 50% of all 314 school districts in North Carolina (based off of combined math and reading proficiency testing data) for the 2021-2022 school year.
The school district's graduation rate of 80% has decreased from 85% over five school years.
Overall District Rank
#168 out of 325 school districts
(Bottom 50%)
(Bottom 50%)
Math Test Scores (% Proficient)
(21-22)51%
51%
Reading/Language Arts Test Scores (% Proficient)
48%
50%
Science Test Scores (% Proficient)
63%
63%
Graduation Rate
(21-22)80%
86%
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