Nantahala News

At Jackson County Public Schools, 70 out of 257 senior 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 rose to 27.2% compared to the previous school year, when 23.6% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Jackson County Early College students stood out from schools in Jackson County Public Schools in science, with almost 78.3% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (18). Meanwhile, students from Blue Ridge Early College struggled the most on the science portion, and only 6.7% 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, 44% of Jackson County Public Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 36.6% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 31.1% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Jackson County Public Schools had an average college readiness of 22% 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)
Jackson County Early College	59.3%	78.3%
Smoky Mountain High School	20.7%	25.8%
Blue Ridge Early College	10%	6.7%
Jackson Community School	<5%	<5%
Jackson County Public Schools	23.6%	27.2%