South North Carolina News

At Whiteville City Schools, 35 out of 149 senior students taking the reading portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Reading scores among the district's schools rose to 23.5% compared to the previous school year, when 17.9% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

For comparison, North Carolina saw 36% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for reading during the 2022-23 school year.

Besides reading, 22.1% of Whiteville City Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 16.8% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 12.8% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Whiteville City Schools had an average college readiness of 8.7% 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)
Whiteville High School	18.3%	23.8%
North Whiteville Academy	<5%	<5%
Whiteville City Schools	17.9%	23.5%