At Alamance-Burlington Schools, 300 out of 1,478 junior 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 dropped to 20.3% compared to the previous school year, when 23.7% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
ABSS Early College at ACC students stood out from schools in Alamance-Burlington Schools in reading, with almost 45.7% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (21). Meanwhile, students from Hugh M. Cummings High School struggled the most on the reading portion, and only 8% were considered ready for college.
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, 26.9% of Alamance-Burlington Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 14.7% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 13.5% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Alamance-Burlington Schools had an average college readiness of 7.1% 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) |
|---|---|---|
| ABSS Early College at ACC | 68.6% | 45.7% |
| Walter M. Williams High School | 28% | 25.6% |
| Western Alamance High School | 25.9% | 24.3% |
| Southern Alamance High School | 23.6% | 23.4% |
| Ray Street Academy | <5% | 20% |
| Eastern Alamance High School | 28.1% | 16.4% |
| Alamance Virtual School | 12.1% | 15% |
| Graham High School | 11% | 14.6% |
| Hugh M. Cummings High School | 8.4% | 8% |
| Alamance-Burlington Schools | 23.7% | 20.3% |
