Gastonia Times

At Lincoln County Schools, 199 out of 772 junior students taking the math portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Math scores among the district's schools dropped to 25.8% compared to the previous school year, when 30.5% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

North Lincoln High School students stood out from schools in Lincoln County Schools in math, with almost 41.7% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (93). Meanwhile, students from West Lincoln High School struggled the most on the math portion, and only 14.4% were considered ready for college.

For comparison, North Carolina saw 25% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for math during the 2022-23 school year.

Besides math, 47.2% of Lincoln County Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 35.1% of students were ready for college, and science scores revealed 27.2% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Lincoln County Schools had an average college readiness of 14.8% 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)
North Lincoln High School	41.6%	41.7%
East Lincoln High School	37.4%	24.5%
Lincolnton High School	20.3%	16.6%
West Lincoln High School	16.5%	14.4%
Asbury Academy	<5%	<5%
Lincoln County Schools	30.5%	25.8%