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Catawba County Schools

At a glance

87^thof 246 North Carolina districts▼ 5

Better than 64% of North Carolina districts

Elementary 16 Middle 5 High 6 Alternative 1Grades PK, KG-12

2285 North Anderson Avenue
Newton, NC 28658-1000·(828) 464-8333·All North Carolina district rankings →

Statewide performance 2018–2026

2026: better than 64.6% of districts

Schools

16,003

Students

5-star school

Top rankedChallenger Early College High20^th of 662 North Carolina high schools

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Biggest riser

Oxford Elementary up 156 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Webb A Murray Elementary 13.9 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

4★

3★

2★

1★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

Compare North Carolina districts →See the top-ranked North Carolina schools →

Summary:

Catawba County Schools enrolls approximately 16,003 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade across 28 schools in Catawba County, North Carolina: 16 elementary, 5 middle, 6 high, and 1 alternative school with only 7 students. The district ranks 87th of 246 North Carolina districts, sitting in the 65th percentile with 3 stars. Its 91.8% graduation rate and 18.0% chronic absenteeism rate both beat state averages, but those district-level figures mask a tremendous gap between elite schools and campuses that are struggling badly.

The district's top performer is Challenger Early College High, ranked 20th of 662 high schools in North Carolina with EOC proficiency from 95.7% to 100% across the core subjects, and it achieves this while spending only $6,093 per student. Among the traditional high schools, Bandys High is the strongest at the 69th percentile with a 94.0% graduation rate, while Bunker Hill High is the most concerning at the 22nd percentile with just 39.1% Math I proficiency, and Saint Stephens High reports a 41.5% chronic absenteeism rate. At the elementary level, Mountain View Elementary, Snow Creek Elementary, Clyde Campbell Elementary, Maiden Elementary, and Balls Creek Elementary are all high-poverty schools in the top third of the state, led by Mountain View at the 79th percentile.

Notably, 20 of the district's 27 schools reporting free/reduced lunch data have rates at or above 98%, yet poverty does not dictate outcomes: Mountain View Elementary and Saint Stephens Elementary have nearly identical free/reduced lunch rates but rank in the 79th and 16th percentiles, respectively, and Webb A Murray Elementary also lands in the bottom quintile at the 19th percentile. Chronic absenteeism is a better warning signal, with the highest-achieving schools posting the lowest rates. Mill Creek Middle leads the middle schools at the 67th percentile, despite a 30.4% chronic absenteeism rate, followed by Jacobs Fork Middle. Districtwide, Math I proficiency is the biggest academic bottleneck, while science is an area of genuine strength, with proficiency often 15 to 20 points higher than reading in the same grade.

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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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOC Biology (2026)	EOC English II (2026)	EOC Math I (2026)	EOC Math III (2026)	EOG Mathematics (2026)						EOG Reading (2026)						EOG Science (2026)		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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	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
Balls Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	2620 Balls Creek Road	Newton	28658	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 464-4766	686	42	16.4	99.6%	508 (74.1%)	29 (4.2%)	65 (9.5%)	36 (5.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (7.0%)	69.3	429^th of 1492 public elementary schools	71.2%		68.4	418^th of 1490 public elementary schools	71.9%	11					69.9	70.6	75.5	88.1			55.3	65.7	57.8	51.5			79.4		$9,471	$1,315	$8,156
Bandys High	Public	9-12	5040 E Bandys Road	Catawba	28609	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 241-1471	935	40	23.1	40.5%	696 (74.4%)	42 (4.5%)	116 (12.4%)	17 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	64 (6.8%)	66.7	206^th of 662 public high schools	68.9%		69.2	181^st of 641 public high schools	71.8%	25	63.8	73.8	60.2	83.0															$8,843	$732	$8,111
Banoak Elementary	Public	K-6	7651 W NC 10 Hwy	Vale	28168	Lincoln County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 462-2849	291	17	16.6	99.0%	230 (79.0%)	5 (1.7%)	25 (8.6%)	9 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (7.6%)	59.7	589^th of 1492 public elementary schools	60.5%		65	485^th of 1490 public elementary schools	67.4%	104					67.7	62.3	68.4	56.5			58.1	69.8	47.4	54.3			76.3		$9,603	$1,411	$8,191
Blackburn Elementary	Public	K-6	4377 W NC 10 Hwy	Newton	28658	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 462-1344	484	28	17.3	99.0%	277 (57.2%)	24 (5.0%)	82 (16.9%)	60 (12.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	39 (8.1%)	61.5	556^th of 1492 public elementary schools	62.7%		65.3	479^th of 1490 public elementary schools	67.9%	77					71.4	59.8	77.6	71.8			61.4	47.6	51.3	52.6			84.2		$9,091	$979	$8,112
Bunker Hill High	Public	9-12	4675 Oxford School Road	Claremont	28610	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 241-3355	845	40	21.1	99.6%	457 (54.1%)	69 (8.2%)	179 (21.2%)	86 (10.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (6.4%)	25.4	518^th of 662 public high schools	21.8%		30.3	441^st of 641 public high schools	31.2%	77	42.5	53.8	39.1	44.9															$8,880	$745	$8,136
Catawba Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	5415 Hudson Chapel Road	Catawba	28609	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 241-3131	450	26	17.0	99.3%	279 (62.0%)	33 (7.3%)	75 (16.7%)	24 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (8.7%)	54.4	662^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	55.6%		52.2	707^th of 1490 public elementary schools	52.6%	45					59.3	64.9	63.3	76.6			59.3	44.2	50.0	62.5			66.7		$9,663	$1,298	$8,365
Charles H Tuttle Elementary	Public	K-6	2872 Water Plant Road	Maiden	28650	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 428-3080	368	22	16.8	99.2%	262 (71.2%)	4 (1.1%)	54 (14.7%)	25 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (6.3%)	58.5	607^th of 1492 public elementary schools	59.3%		63.2	508^th of 1490 public elementary schools	65.9%	99					54.5	75.0	61.2	72.3			56.8	69.6	44.9	53.8			67.3		$9,003	$737	$8,265
Claremont Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	3384 E Main Street	Claremont	28610	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 459-7921	462	29	16.0	99.4%	227 (49.1%)	47 (10.2%)	92 (19.9%)	51 (11.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (9.7%)	48.7	752^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	49.6%		48	780^th of 1490 public elementary schools	47.7%	28					78.8	49.2	60.0	72.2			57.6	44.3	46.7	37.0			72.0		$10,074	$1,575	$8,498
Clyde Campbell Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	2121 35th Avenue Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2769	505	31	16.1	99.4%	305 (60.4%)	22 (4.4%)	86 (17.0%)	46 (9.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (9.1%)	73.4	355^th of 1492 public elementary schools	76.2%		71.1	372^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	75.0%	17					74.6	76.7	74.3	62.5			62.0	73.3	59.5	65.3			71.6		$9,813	$1,428	$8,385
Fred T Foard High	Public	9-12	3407 Plateau Road	Newton	28658	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 462-1496	930	43	21.8	46.9%	684 (73.5%)	30 (3.2%)	98 (10.5%)	48 (5.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.3%)	67 (7.2%)	53.1	303^rd of 662 public high schools	54.2%		52.6	274^th of 641 public high schools	57.3%	29	63.5	62.7	63.7	61.1															$8,769	$744	$8,025
Harry M Arndt Middle	Public	7-8	3350 34th Street Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 256-9545	601	36	16.7	99.5%	275 (45.8%)	44 (7.3%)	204 (33.9%)	28 (4.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (8.3%)	53.2	368^th of 778 public middle schools	52.7%		49.2	392^nd of 773 public middle schools	49.3%	24									56.2	53.1					56.7	51.1		72.4	$7,986	$496	$7,490
Maiden Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	245 Bob Smyre Ave	Maiden	28650	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 428-8769	562	32	17.6	98.9%	357 (63.5%)	48 (8.5%)	92 (16.4%)	26 (4.6%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (6.4%)	70.9	398^th of 1492 public elementary schools	73.3%		67.8	431^st of 1490 public elementary schools	71.1%	33					81.4	67.9	78.0	74.1			65.7	60.7	57.3	51.9			78.0		$9,171	$1,063	$8,108
Maiden High	Public	9-12	600 West Main Street	Maiden	28650	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 428-8197	852	41	20.7	49.1%	528 (62.0%)	54 (6.3%)	150 (17.6%)	57 (6.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	63 (7.4%)	48.3	342^nd of 662 public high schools	48.3%		47.8	320^th of 641 public high schools	50.1%	22	54.3	63.7	49.2	69.9															$9,016	$684	$8,333
Mountain View Elementary	Public	K-6	5911 Dwayne Starnes Road	Hickory	28602	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 294-2020	708	40	17.5	99.6%	475 (67.1%)	33 (4.7%)	54 (7.6%)	74 (10.5%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	71 (10.0%)	75.7	306^th of 1492 public elementary schools	79.5%		79.6	250^th of 1490 public elementary schools	83.2%	56					84.0	77.0	70.4	80.0			63.8	68.0	60.9	60.0			73.9		$8,895	$775	$8,120
Oxford Elementary	Public	K-6	5915 Oxford School Road	Claremont	28610	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 459-7220	540	33	16.3	98.7%	311 (57.6%)	29 (5.4%)	84 (15.6%)	71 (13.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (8.3%)	34	1028^th of 1492 public elementary schools	31.1%		25.1	1184^th of 1490 public elementary schools	20.5%	156					73.2	50.0	41.9	47.9			48.5	40.7	39.2	33.8			71.6		$9,354	$1,609	$7,745
Sherrills Ford Elementary	Public	K-6	8103 Sherrills Ford Road	Sherrills Ford	28673	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 478-2662	633	35	17.9	42.3%	464 (73.3%)	38 (6.0%)	71 (11.2%)	9 (1.4%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (7.7%)	66.9	471^st of 1492 public elementary schools	68.4%		75.4	312^th of 1490 public elementary schools	79.1%	159					78.9	75.0	65.3	73.2			55.8	59.8	54.7	66.0			67.4		$8,556	$592	$7,964
Saint Stephens Elementary	Public	K-6	684 30th Street NE	Conover	28613	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2570	711	47	15.0	99.6%	194 (27.3%)	146 (20.5%)	254 (35.7%)	48 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	69 (9.7%)	21.3	1260^th of 1492 public elementary schools	15.5%		18.1	1313^th of 1490 public elementary schools	11.9%	53					60.6	33.7	41.7	46.9			35.6	42.6	42.7	36.7			55.2		$9,685	$1,747	$7,938
Saint Stephens High	Public	9-12	3205 34th Street Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 256-9841	1,268	57	22.0	99.8%	560 (44.2%)	109 (8.6%)	442 (34.9%)	62 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	95 (7.5%)	49.9	330^th of 662 public high schools	50.2%		58	243^rd of 641 public high schools	62.1%	87	64.7	62.9	42.2	68.9															$8,502	$740	$7,761
Startown Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	4119 Startown Road	Newton	28658	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 464-1257	540	34	15.7	99.4%	289 (53.5%)	32 (5.9%)	103 (19.1%)	60 (11.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	56 (10.4%)	46.8	787^th of 1492 public elementary schools	47.3%		54.5	660^th of 1490 public elementary schools	55.7%	127					87.1	61.4	51.8	57.1			65.7	42.9	48.2	51.4			54.2		$9,647	$1,184	$8,463
Webb A Murray Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	3901 Section House Road	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2196	380	27	13.9	99.2%	102 (26.8%)	37 (9.7%)	184 (48.4%)	29 (7.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (7.1%)	23.5	1213^th of 1492 public elementary schools	18.7%		37.4	957^th of 1490 public elementary schools	35.8%	256					47.7	42.0	46.9	52.1			31.8	40.0	38.8	54.2			53.1		$10,328	$1,457	$8,872
Jacobs Fork Middle	Public	7-8	3431 Plateau Road	Newton	28658	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 462-1827	482	30	16.3	52.9%	327 (67.8%)	28 (5.8%)	60 (12.4%)	32 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (7.3%)	61.9	279^th of 778 public middle schools	64.1%		68	221^st of 773 public middle schools	71.4%	58									68.4	51.2					59.0	58.6		73.8	$8,548	$885	$7,663
Mill Creek Middle	Public	7-8	1041 Shiloh Road	Claremont	28610	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 241-1494	477	30	16.1	45.9%	353 (74.0%)	29 (6.1%)	54 (11.3%)	10 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	30 (6.3%)	63.8	258^th of 778 public middle schools	66.8%		51.7	373^rd of 773 public middle schools	51.7%	115									62.3	60.0					51.8	63.3		78.0	$8,693	$756	$7,937
River Bend Middle	Public	7-8	4670 Oxford School Road	Claremont	28610	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 241-2754	450	27	16.6	99.3%	211 (46.9%)	29 (6.4%)	85 (18.9%)	74 (16.4%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	49 (10.9%)	47.7	417^th of 778 public middle schools	46.4%		43.2	448^th of 773 public middle schools	42.0%	31									53.8	59.4					41.0	49.8		73.1	$8,304	$825	$7,479
Lyle Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	1845 Edgewater Drive NW	Conover	28613	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 464-0299	458	31	14.6	99.3%	167 (36.5%)	14 (3.1%)	114 (24.9%)	109 (23.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (11.8%)	47	782^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	47.6%		47.2	795^th of 1490 public elementary schools	46.6%	13					74.6	45.2	49.1	58.6			59.3	50.0	52.7	50.0			70.9		$10,199	$1,523	$8,677
Challenger Early College High	Public	9-12	2550 Hwy 70 SE	Hickory	28602	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 485-2980	376	11	33.5	49.5%	131 (34.8%)	10 (2.7%)	122 (32.4%)	72 (19.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	40 (10.6%)	93.6	20^th of 662 public high schools	97.0%		95.5	16^th of 641 public high schools	97.5%	4	98.9	100.0	96.2	95.7															$6,093	$246	$5,847
Maiden Middle School	Public	7-8	518 North C Avenue	Maiden	28650	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 428-2326	451	28	16.4	98.9%	292 (64.7%)	21 (4.7%)	71 (15.7%)	38 (8.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.4%)	56.1	338^th of 778 public middle schools	56.6%		57.8	299^th of 773 public middle schools	61.3%	39									57.3	58.7					61.6	54.3		65.0	$8,168	$563	$7,604
Catawba Rosenwald Education Center	Public, Alternative	K-12	403 6th Ave SW	Catawba	28609	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 241-2734	7	10	.6		5 (71.4%)	1 (14.3%)	1 (14.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																			$51,001	$12,818	$38,183
Snow Creek Elementary	Public	K-6	3238 Snow Creek Rd	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2335	551	36	15.1	99.5%	324 (58.8%)	14 (2.5%)	120 (21.8%)	40 (7.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (9.6%)	74.3	332^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	77.7%		67.7	434^th of 1490 public elementary schools	70.9%	102					79.5	75.3	77.9	74.0			69.9	64.2	55.8	57.5			75.6		$9,304	$1,117	$8,187

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Newton Conover City Schools	5.94 mi	7	72^nd
Lincoln County Schools	6.67 mi	23	75^th
Iredell-Statesville Schools	10.42 mi	37	121^st
West Lake Preparatory Academy	11.54 mi	1
Lincoln Charter School	12.31 mi	1

See the top NC North Carolina districts

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.