Foothills Review

At Cleveland County Schools, 284 out of 951 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 29.9% compared to the previous school year, when 25.8% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Cleveland ECHS students stood out from schools in Cleveland County Schools in reading, with almost 44.8% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (26). Meanwhile, students from Shelby High School struggled the most on the reading portion, and only 24.5% 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, 35.2% of Cleveland County Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In math, 21% of students were ready for college, and science scores revealed 19.5% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Cleveland County Schools had an average college readiness of 11.6% 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)
Cleveland ECHS	52.3%	44.8%
Kings Mountain High School	25.8%	31.5%
Cleveland Innovation	<5%	31.3%
Crest High School	26.8%	30.8%
Burns High School	21.7%	27.7%
Shelby High School	22.4%	24.5%
Turning Point Academy	<5%	<5%
Cleveland County Schools	25.8%	29.9%