IBX News

At Weldon City Schools, five out of 50 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 dropped to 10% compared to the previous school year, when 13.6% 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, 14% of Weldon City Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 8% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed less than 5% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Weldon City Schools had an average college readiness of less than 5% 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)
Roanoke Valley Early College	19.4%	18.5%
Weldon STEM High School Career Academies	7.1%	<5%
Weldon City Schools	13.6%	10%