Rowan News

At Rowan-Salisbury Schools, 278 out of 1,228 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 22.6% compared to the previous school year, when 22% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Rowan County Early College students stood out from schools in Rowan-Salisbury Schools in reading, with almost 45.2% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (28). Meanwhile, students from North Rowan High School struggled the most on the reading portion, and only 12.5% 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, 24.6% of Rowan-Salisbury Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 12.3% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 8.5% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Rowan-Salisbury Schools had an average college readiness of 5.1% 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)
Rowan County Early College	37%	45.2%
Carson High School	28.2%	27.6%
East Rowan High School	22.9%	26.7%
Salisbury High School	26%	21.3%
West Rowan High School	17.7%	18.3%
South Rowan High School	20.8%	17.6%
North Rowan High School	5.2%	12.5%
Henderson High School	<5%	<5%
Rowan-Salisbury Schools	22%	22.6%