IBX News

At Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools, 49 out of 253 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 19.4% compared to the previous school year, when 26.8% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Pasquotank County High School students stood out from schools in Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools in reading, with almost 20.6% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (26). Meanwhile, students from Northeastern High School struggled the most on the reading portion, and 18.1% 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, 24.1% of Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 9.1% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 5.1% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public 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)
Pasquotank County High School	27.3%	20.6%
Northeastern High School	18.4%	18.1%
Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools	26.8%	19.4%