Rocky Mount Today

At Nash County Public Schools, 113 out of 1,012 junior students taking the science portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Science scores among the district's schools dropped to 11.2% compared to the previous school year, when 12.3% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

NRM Early College High School students stood out from schools in Nash County Public Schools in science, with almost 38.1% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (32). Meanwhile, students from Rocky Mount High School struggled the most on the science portion, and only 5.5% were considered ready for college.

For comparison, North Carolina saw 26% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for science during the 2022-23 school year.

Besides science, 19.4% of Nash County Public Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 15.3% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 8.1% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Nash County Public Schools had an average college readiness of 5.3% across all ACT areas.

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%.

School	Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2021-22)	Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2022-23)
NRM Early College High School	37.2%	38.1%
CITI High School	9.5%	17.6%
Southern Nash High School	12.7%	12%
Northern Nash High School	11.5%	10%
Nash Central High School	6.7%	6.3%
Rocky Mount High School	10%	5.5%
Tar River Academy	<5%	<5%
Nash County Public Schools	12.3%	11.2%