Summary:
Z.E.C.A. School of Arts and Technology, the sole school in its own single-school district in Jacksonville, North Carolina, is a K-8 elementary school serving 104 students in a high-poverty area where 95% of children qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
As the only school in the Z.E.C.A. School of Arts and Technology district, this one school defines the entire district’s performance, and the picture is concerning. Ranked 1,410th out of 1,492 North Carolina schools in 2025-2026, it sits near the bottom in the 5th percentile. Test scores are far below state averages, especially in math: 5th-grade math proficiency sank to just 10% in 2025-2026 versus 62.9% statewide, and 4th-grade math was only 8.3% proficient the year before. Science is another significant weakness, with just 20% of 5th graders proficient compared to 62% statewide. In reading, results are mixed but mostly below average, with one shining exception: 7th-grade reading reached 70% proficiency in 2024-2025, beating the state average by 18 points. However, 5th-grade reading was only 26.7% in the same year. This volatility likely stems from very small grade-level cohorts in a school of just 104 students.
The most urgent red flag at Z.E.C.A. School of Arts and Technology is chronic absenteeism: 57.9% of students miss enough school to be considered chronically absent, more than double the state rate of 24.2%. When more than half of students are routinely missing instruction, academic success becomes extremely difficult. While the school has improved slightly in statewide standing since ranking in the 1st percentile in 2023-2024, it remains a chronically low-performing school with pervasive achievement gaps. Parents should know that although there are a few encouraging pockets—particularly in middle-grade reading—the overall combination of extreme poverty, high absenteeism, and test scores far below state averages means the school faces severe challenges that would require substantial intervention to overcome.
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