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Best Public Schools in Orange County, NC

At a glance

Schools

19,543

Students

Districts

5-star schools

Top rankedThe Expedition School52^nd of 1,490 North Carolina elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Pathways Elementary up 477 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Estes Hills Elementary 10.9 students per teacher

✦

Newly ranked this year

Phoenix Academy High

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

3★

2★

2 schools without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

See the top-ranked North Carolina schools →

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				EOC Biology (2025)	EOC English II (2025)	EOC Math I (2025)	EOC Math III (2025)	EOG Mathematics (2025)						EOG Reading (2025)						EOG Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOC Biology End of Course	EOC English II End of Course	EOC Math I End of Course	EOC Math III End of Course	EOG Mathematics 3rd Grade	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Eno River Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	1212 NC Highway 57 North	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Eno River Academy	Yes	No	No	No	(919) 644-6272	828	62	13.2		641 (77.4%)	36 (4.3%)	72 (8.7%)	10 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	67 (8.1%)								(n/a)	69.1	85.3	55.8	90.1	75.0	66.7	75.6	80.3	76.9	63.5	72.5	74.4	75.6	73.8	73.8	71.9	82.9	87.5
The Expedition School	Public, Charter	K-8	437 Dimmocks Mill Rd Ste 33	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	The Expedition School	Yes	No	No	No	(919) 245-8432	380	29	13.1		282 (74.2%)	14 (3.7%)	37 (9.7%)	17 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	28 (7.4%)	95.1	52^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	96.5%		94.3	56^th of 1505 public elementary schools	96.3%	4					95.4	69.8	81.8	88.4	88.4	92.1	88.6	95.4	88.6	93.0	86.0	94.7	97.7	94.7
Carrboro Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	400 Shelton St	Carrboro	27510	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 968-3652	515	40	12.8	32.6%	286 (55.5%)	17 (3.3%)	174 (33.8%)	13 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.9%)	82.1	216^th of 1490 public elementary schools	85.5%		75.2	323^rd of 1505 public elementary schools	78.5%	107					76.8	75.0	70.1				67.1	72.3	66.7				74.7		$13,407	$564	$12,843
Chapel Hill High	Public	9-12	9217 Seawell School Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 929-2106	1,608	101	15.9	22.2%	821 (51.1%)	174 (10.8%)	316 (19.7%)	190 (11.8%)	2 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	105 (6.5%)	75.3	154^th of 641 public high schools	76.0%		74	160^th of 640 public high schools	75.0%	6	80.4	80.9	38.6	74.7															$11,533	$502	$11,031
Seawell Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	9115 Seawell School Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 967-4343	416	34	12.4	30.0%	142 (34.1%)	55 (13.2%)	44 (10.6%)	136 (32.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (9.4%)	86.9	145^th of 1490 public elementary schools	90.3%		90.7	104^th of 1505 public elementary schools	93.1%	41					55.2	78.9	85.7				60.3	80.0	81.9				90.5		$13,527	$419	$13,108
Ephesus Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1495 Ephesus Church Rd	Chapel Hill	27517	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 929-8715	410	33	12.5	30.0%	203 (49.5%)	72 (17.6%)	57 (13.9%)	55 (13.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	22 (5.4%)	78.9	265^th of 1490 public elementary schools	82.2%		77.5	288^th of 1505 public elementary schools	80.9%	23					69.4	79.2	76.7				61.3	75.0	60.3				72.6		$13,810	$557	$13,253
Estes Hills Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	500 N Estes Dr	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 942-4753	336	31	10.9	26.5%	191 (56.8%)	39 (11.6%)	39 (11.6%)	25 (7.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (12.5%)	87.8	141^st of 1490 public elementary schools	90.5%		83.3	198^th of 1505 public elementary schools	86.8%	57					86.9	68.2	82.5				83.6	65.9	71.9				82.5		$14,515	$862	$13,653
FPG Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	101 Smith Level Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(919) 942-6491	536	40	13.2	36.4%	206 (38.4%)	20 (3.7%)	275 (51.3%)	7 (1.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (5.0%)	76	305^th of 1490 public elementary schools	79.5%		64	510^th of 1505 public elementary schools	66.1%	205					70.5	68.7	65.3				60.3	73.5	64.0				73.3		$11,908	$501	$11,407
Glenwood Elementary	Public	K-5	2 Prestwick Rd	Chapel Hill	27517	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 968-3473	390	33	12.0	19.2%	150 (38.5%)	34 (8.7%)	17 (4.4%)	137 (35.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	51 (13.1%)	93.3	69^th of 1490 public elementary schools	95.4%		93	70^th of 1505 public elementary schools	95.3%	1					84.7	89.9	78.3				81.9	82.6	78.3				84.1		$13,438	$519	$12,919
Culbreth Middle	Public	6-8	225 Culbreth Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 929-7161	632	52	12.0	33.9%	287 (45.4%)	69 (10.9%)	190 (30.1%)	29 (4.6%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	55 (8.7%)	70.3	198^th of 773 public middle schools	74.4%		69.8	210^th of 793 public middle schools	73.5%	12								67.7	57.0	63.8				60.0	54.1	63.8		71.5	$12,195	$336	$11,860
Phillips Middle	Public	6-8	606 N Estes Dr	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 929-2188	600	52	11.4	27.0%	272 (45.3%)	86 (14.3%)	59 (9.8%)	131 (21.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	51 (8.5%)	85	93^rd of 773 public middle schools	88.0%		83.3	107^th of 793 public middle schools	86.5%	14								77.7	70.4	67.9				72.1	64.6	71.3		78.1	$12,655	$480	$12,175
UNC Hospital School	Public, Alternative	PK, KG-12	101 Manning Dr	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 966-5009	0	15	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)																			$135,341	$129	$135,212
McDougle Middle	Public	6-8	900 Old Fayetteville Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 933-1556	659	57	11.6	27.6%	359 (54.5%)	69 (10.5%)	167 (25.3%)	17 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (7.1%)	84.8	98^th of 773 public middle schools	87.3%		83	110^th of 793 public middle schools	86.1%	12								76.7	65.4	69.4				72.1	67.7	75.1		75.6	$13,223	$311	$12,913
East Chapel Hill High	Public	9-12	500 Weaver Dairy Rd	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 969-2482	1,419	87	16.3	22.2%	660 (46.5%)	158 (11.1%)	188 (13.2%)	294 (20.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	119 (8.4%)	77.3	144^th of 641 public high schools	77.5%		79.7	135^th of 640 public high schools	78.9%	9	71.6	88.0	41.9	80.5															$11,539	$386	$11,153
McDougle Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	890 Old Fayetteville Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 969-2435	497	39	12.9	31.4%	281 (56.5%)	76 (15.3%)	90 (18.1%)	14 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (7.2%)	79.4	253^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	83.0%		85.6	170^th of 1505 public elementary schools	88.7%	83					75.0	71.6	76.8				56.5	71.6	67.4				71.6		$12,936	$505	$12,431
Scroggs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	501 Kildaire Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-7165	410	34	12.0	30.0%	212 (51.7%)	58 (14.1%)	56 (13.7%)	55 (13.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.1%)	74.5	325^th of 1490 public elementary schools	78.2%		86.1	167^th of 1505 public elementary schools	88.9%	158					66.2	72.0	70.3				58.8	69.3	67.2				67.2		$13,218	$771	$12,446
Smith Middle	Public	6-8	9201 Seawell School Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-2145	763	56	13.6	22.4%	322 (42.2%)	104 (13.6%)	98 (12.8%)	170 (22.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	69 (9.0%)	88.3	67^th of 773 public middle schools	91.3%		89.4	68^th of 793 public middle schools	91.4%	1								73.4	71.7	75.0				75.5	73.5	75.3		78.6	$11,562	$338	$11,224
Rashkis Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	601 Meadowmont Ln	Chapel Hill	27517	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 918-2160	455	35	12.8	47.7%	146 (32.1%)	95 (20.9%)	68 (14.9%)	106 (23.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (8.8%)	66.6	456^th of 1490 public elementary schools	69.4%		74.7	328^th of 1505 public elementary schools	78.2%	128					69.4	64.0	77.3				54.8	50.7	57.3				73.3		$15,130	$665	$14,464
Carrboro High	Public	9-12	201 Rock Haven Rd	Carrboro	27510	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-2200	885	64	13.7	30.4%	441 (49.8%)	82 (9.3%)	272 (30.7%)	43 (4.9%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	45 (5.1%)	51.8	282^nd of 641 public high schools	56.0%		64.7	206^th of 640 public high schools	67.8%	76	54.9	61.8	35.6	65.8															$13,304	$311	$12,993
Morris Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	215 Eubanks Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-4800	383	32	12.1	22.5%	211 (55.1%)	30 (7.8%)	54 (14.1%)	56 (14.6%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (7.8%)	93.5	67^th of 1490 public elementary schools	95.5%		95.1	46^th of 1505 public elementary schools	96.9%	21					86.2	83.3	89.8				79.3	72.7	83.0				86.4		$12,863	$298	$12,565
Phoenix Academy High	Public	8-12	750 S Merritt Mill Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-2300	27	10	2.7	88.9%	8 (29.6%)	8 (29.6%)	8 (29.6%)	1 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (7.4%)	14.5	567^th of 641 public high schools	11.5%					(n/a)		50.0		7.7															$46,250	$370	$45,881
Northside Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	350 Caldwell St	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 918-2220	412	32	12.9	52.9%	172 (41.7%)	110 (26.7%)	50 (12.1%)	51 (12.4%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.3%)	46.8	808^th of 1490 public elementary schools	45.8%		38.6	961^st of 1505 public elementary schools	36.1%	153					64.5	51.3	53.8				56.5	51.3	51.3				53.8		$14,816	$528	$14,288
A L Stanback Middle	Public	6-8	3700 NC 86 South	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 644-3200	648	45	14.4	57.7%	238 (36.7%)	69 (10.6%)	284 (43.8%)	12 (1.9%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (6.5%)	51.9	371^st of 773 public middle schools	52.0%		49	405^th of 793 public middle schools	48.9%	34								49.5	50.3	55.9				42.9	52.3	54.5		69.2	$11,425	$789	$10,636
River Park Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	240 St. Mary's Road	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-9326	523	36	14.4	37.5%	309 (59.1%)	27 (5.2%)	131 (25.0%)	10 (1.9%)	6 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (7.6%)	81	234^th of 1490 public elementary schools	84.3%		70.7	390^th of 1505 public elementary schools	74.1%	156					78.2	71.3	76.0				56.4	70.6	71.0				73.0		$10,994	$454	$10,540
Central Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	154 Hayes St	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 732-3622	261	23	11.1	98.9%	105 (40.2%)	72 (27.6%)	63 (24.1%)	4 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (6.5%)	34.1	1017^th of 1490 public elementary schools	31.7%		29.8	1102^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	26.8%	85					54.0	58.1	52.7				36.0	41.9	45.5				50.9		$14,465	$1,168	$13,297
Orange Middle	Public	6-8	308 Orange High Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-6121	514	38	13.4	43.4%	300 (58.4%)	69 (13.4%)	104 (20.2%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (7.4%)	68.2	219^th of 773 public middle schools	71.7%		65	249^th of 793 public middle schools	68.6%	30								60.8	75.6	49.4				62.9	62.8	57.1		64.1	$10,665	$408	$10,256
Efland Cheeks Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4401 Fuller Rd	Efland	27243	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 245-4042	532	36	14.7	99.4%	175 (32.9%)	129 (24.2%)	154 (28.9%)	26 (4.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (8.8%)	61.9	533^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	64.2%		42.1	884^th of 1505 public elementary schools	41.3%	351					75.0	78.7	56.1				50.6	67.4	54.1				52.0		$11,292	$882	$10,410
Grady Brown Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1100 New Grady Brown Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 732-6138	406	31	13.2	59.6%	170 (41.9%)	46 (11.3%)	146 (36.0%)	12 (3.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.6%)	49.3	757^th of 1490 public elementary schools	49.2%		30.2	1094^th of 1505 public elementary schools	27.3%	337					65.7	58.6	51.5				49.3	55.7	50.0				55.9		$12,441	$1,012	$11,429
Orange High	Public	9-12	500 Orange High Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-6133	1,161	59	19.6	46.3%	596 (51.3%)	193 (16.6%)	285 (24.5%)	15 (1.3%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	70 (6.0%)	48	316^th of 641 public high schools	50.7%		50.7	294^th of 640 public high schools	54.1%	22	50.4	55.5	28.0	75.2															$9,879	$469	$9,410
Hillsborough Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	402 North Nash Street	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-6137	435	30	14.6	17.5%	337 (77.5%)	28 (6.4%)	30 (6.9%)	11 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.7%)	90.8	98^th of 1490 public elementary schools	93.4%		90.6	108^th of 1505 public elementary schools	92.8%	10					88.9	75.0	74.3				68.1	80.6	82.4				87.8		$11,531	$386	$11,145
New Hope Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1900 New Hope Church Rd	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 942-9696	528	46	11.5	99.1%	142 (26.9%)	62 (11.7%)	273 (51.7%)	10 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (7.6%)	47.4	791^st of 1490 public elementary schools	46.9%		42.9	872^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	42.1%	81					67.8	65.4	58.5				36.8	56.8	39.4				58.5		$13,203	$1,160	$12,043
Pathways Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	431 Strouds Creek Road	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-9136	371	27	13.7	54.4%	204 (55.0%)	66 (17.8%)	57 (15.4%)	6 (1.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (10.0%)	80.8	238^th of 1490 public elementary schools	84.0%		52	715^th of 1505 public elementary schools	52.5%	477					82.5	78.0	74.6				62.5	70.0	56.7				79.1		$14,700	$1,138	$13,561
Cedar Ridge High	Public	9-12	1125 New Grady Brown Sch Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 245-4000	1,148	47	24.2	47.2%	528 (46.0%)	117 (10.2%)	411 (35.8%)	20 (1.7%)	4 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	68 (5.9%)	54.2	268^th of 641 public high schools	58.2%		54	273^rd of 640 public high schools	57.3%	5	50.6	65.7	34.3	72.8															$10,912	$399	$10,512
Partnership Academy	Public	9-12	920 Corporate Drive	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 245-4030	40	4	10.5	92.5%	16 (40.0%)	9 (22.5%)	6 (15.0%)	1 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (20.0%)	6.7	613^th of 641 public high schools	4.4%		14.4	554^th of 640 public high schools	13.4%	59	15.4	25.0																	$22,657	$918	$21,740
Gravelly Hill Middle	Public	6-8	4801 West Ten Road	Efland	27243	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 245-4050	415	31	13.4	56.4%	187 (45.1%)	86 (20.7%)	99 (23.9%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (7.7%)	48.3	399^th of 773 public middle schools	48.4%		42.9	461^st of 793 public middle schools	41.9%	62								55.6	38.5	52.6				45.1	47.5	60.9		61.7	$11,455	$480	$10,975

SchoolDigger rankings lists for North Carolina:

Elementary Schools Middle Schools High Schools Districts Cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.