At Henderson County Schools, 348 out of 930 senior students taking the English portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
English scores among the district’s schools rose to 37.4% compared to the previous school year, when 35.9% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
Henderson County Early College students stood out from schools in Henderson County Schools in English, with almost 86% of the 12th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (37). Meanwhile, students from Henderson County Career Academy struggled the most on the English portion, and only 14.3% were considered ready for college.
For comparison, North Carolina saw 41% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for English during the 2022-23 school year.
Besides English, 34.7% of Henderson County Schools 12th-graders met reading college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In science, 25.5% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 23.7% of seniors also met the standard. Overall, Henderson County Schools had an average college readiness of 15.4% 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) |
|---|---|---|
| Henderson County Early College | 79.5% | 86% |
| Hendersonville High School | 41.7% | 57.3% |
| West Henderson High School | 44.9% | 42% |
| East Henderson High School | 21.1% | 27.6% |
| North Henderson High School | 28.9% | 22.9% |
| Henderson County Career Academy | <5% | 14.3% |
| Henderson County Schools | 35.9% | 37.4% |
