SE North Carolina News

At Brunswick County Schools, 264 out of 868 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 30.4% compared to the previous school year, when 26.2% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Brunswick County Early College students stood out from schools in Brunswick County Schools in reading, with almost 65.5% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (55). Meanwhile, students from North Brunswick High School struggled the most on the reading portion, and only 21.9% 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, 33.1% of Brunswick County Schools 12th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 22.9% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 17.9% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Brunswick County Schools had an average college readiness of 10.8% 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)
Brunswick County Early College	61.8%	65.5%
South Brunswick High School	26%	32.4%
West Brunswick High School	17.7%	26.4%
North Brunswick High School	24.5%	21.9%
Brunswick County Schools	26.2%	30.4%