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Mountain Discovery

Public, Charter Grades K-8
861st
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,492 North Carolina Elementary Schools
Better than 42% of North Carolina elementary schools
Summary

Mountain Discovery is a small K-8 charter school in Bryson City, NC, enrolling 221 students in a region where most nearby traditional public schools serve very high-poverty student populations.

The school operates as its own Mountain Discovery Charter School district, earning a 3-star rating. At the school level, it sits in the 42nd percentile statewide — a striking fall for a school that ranked in the 94th percentile in 2016-17 and was once among the state's elite. The slide accelerated after the pandemic, and the school has not recovered. While it still beats most nearby Swain County and Jackson County schools like Cullowhee Valley School and Swain County West Elementary, two higher-poverty Macon County schools — Cartoogechaye Elementary and Iotla Valley Elementary — currently rank higher.

Academically, the school has an unusual split: reading is a real strength, while math lags. Eighth grade reading proficiency hit 86.7% versus 56.1% statewide, and 7th grade reached 71.4% versus 56.3% — far above any nearby school. But 3rd grade math proficiency was just 38.7% versus 66.4% statewide, and 5th grade math reached only 36.4% versus 62.9%. A persistent gap like this points to math instruction and curriculum challenges rather than a student-readiness problem. Eighth grade science has been a repeated high point (100% most recently), though with just 221 students across K-8, small cohorts call for caution.

Two concerns stand out. Chronic absenteeism has climbed two straight years to 29% — nearly 5 points above the state rate — meaning about three in ten students are chronically absent, which is strongly associated with lower achievement. Effectiveness data also shows uneven subgroup results: White students rank at the 25th percentile relative to White students statewide, well below the school's overall 42nd percentile, and economically disadvantaged students sit at the 36th percentile. Mountain Discovery today is a school with genuine literacy strengths, clear math and attendance challenges, and a long way back to its former elite status.

221
Students ?
16.2
Student/teacher ratio ?
16.5%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 890 Jenkins Branch Rd N
       Bryson City, NC  28713

(828) 488-1222

District: Mountain Discovery Charter School

Racial breakdown:

White:
78.7%
Two or more races:
8.6%
American Indian:
7.7%
more
 See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

 Compare Mountain Discovery to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Declining — 91st percentile in 2016 → 42nd in 2026
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped — down 49 percentile points since 2016
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
!Mathematics scores 11 pts below the North Carolina average
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school59%
North Carolina avg59%
Elementary school
861st of 1,492
North Carolina public elementary schools ?
Bottom 42%▼ down 49 pts since 2016
From top 9% (2016) to bottom 42% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
Middle school
251st of 778
North Carolina public middle schools ?
Top 32%▼ down 20 pts since 2016
From top 12% (2016) to top 32% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Middle Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
92nd of 246Mountain Discovery Charter School among North Carolina districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Elementary school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202642.8861 of 149242.3%★★☆☆☆
202543.5860 of 149042.3%★★☆☆☆
202440.5923 of 150538.7%★★☆☆☆
202346.8816 of 150245.7%★★☆☆☆
202248.8761 of 151449.7%★★☆☆☆
202146.4758 of 148949.1%★★☆☆☆
201975.0302 of 147379.5%★★★★☆
201878.8243 of 143483.1%★★★★☆
201789.489 of 142993.8%★★★★★
201687.2124 of 142591.3%★★★★★
201571.0395 of 144072.6%★★★★☆
201479.4250 of 139082.0%★★★★☆
201368.6389 of 140372.3%★★★★☆
201268.4438 of 138868.4%★★★☆☆
201174.6306 of 138177.8%★★★★☆
201077.0259 of 136381.0%★★★★☆
200949.5773 of 135442.9%★★☆☆☆
200854.5643 of 132451.4%★★★☆☆
200742.1858 of 129333.6%★★☆☆☆
200628.61021 of 127620.0%★☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202551.1698 of 145151.9%★★★☆☆
202371.4367 of 145974.8%★★★★☆
202260.1544 of 145862.7%★★★☆☆
202156.0589 of 144059.1%★★★☆☆
201986.5118 of 142491.7%★★★★★
201888.0100 of 140592.9%★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202639.3912 of 143436.4%★★☆☆☆
202549.7699 of 143751.4%★★★☆☆
202441.9895 of 145038.3%★★☆☆☆
202351.9669 of 143753.4%★★★☆☆
202238.1877 of 136635.8%★★☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202645.3801 of 145144.8%★★☆☆☆
202551.1703 of 145051.5%★★★☆☆
202436.0970 of 146433.7%★★☆☆☆
202149.0700 of 144451.5%★★★☆☆
201960.1539 of 143062.3%★★★☆☆
201876.4267 of 141381.1%★★★★☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202632.5863 of 114624.7%★☆☆☆☆
202525.8956 of 117218.4%★☆☆☆☆
202420.81014 of 116613.0%★☆☆☆☆
202319.11055 of 118310.8%★☆☆☆☆
202231.3900 of 119424.6%★☆☆☆☆
202134.9798 of 117231.9%★★☆☆☆
201966.4370 of 118368.7%★★★☆☆
201869.8341 of 117871.1%★★★★☆
Middle school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202664.6251 of 77867.7%★★★☆☆
202570.7192 of 77375.2%★★★★☆
202460.9282 of 79364.4%★★★☆☆
202370.8199 of 78474.6%★★★★☆
202282.6123 of 78684.4%★★★★☆
202183.993 of 74187.4%★★★★☆
201969.3208 of 73771.8%★★★★☆
201889.740 of 69194.2%★★★★★
201787.452 of 69492.5%★★★★★
201683.682 of 69288.2%★★★★☆
201588.459 of 70591.6%★★★★★
201494.824 of 62796.2%★★★★★
201393.135 of 67394.8%★★★★★
201284.746 of 66293.1%★★★★★
201177.1115 of 64882.3%★★★★☆
201067.8209 of 64067.3%★★★☆☆
200948.0386 of 63038.7%★★☆☆☆
200874.5135 of 62078.2%★★★★☆
200740.9424 of 60630.0%★★☆☆☆
200630.3470 of 59821.4%★☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202682.797 of 73186.7%★★★★☆
202560.3261 of 73364.4%★★★☆☆
202465.2232 of 73868.6%★★★☆☆
201875.8139 of 65678.8%★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202639.9436 of 72539.9%★★☆☆☆
202562.0218 of 72970.1%★★★★☆
202463.2224 of 74369.9%★★★★☆
202365.5185 of 73574.8%★★★★☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202654.9325 of 73655.8%★★★☆☆
202580.7121 of 73383.5%★★★★☆
202388.471 of 74790.5%★★★★★
202174.9162 of 71177.2%★★★★☆
201968.4201 of 69771.2%★★★★☆
201890.738 of 66594.3%★★★★★

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202637.3430 of 64433.2%★★☆☆☆
202545.1359 of 64944.7%★★☆☆☆
202442.7380 of 65241.7%★★☆☆☆
202357.9257 of 65660.8%★★★☆☆
202277.5135 of 65879.5%★★★★☆
202171.4158 of 63275.0%★★★★☆
201950.9307 of 62450.8%★★★☆☆
201881.983 of 59686.1%★★★★☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Elementary school
Female (2025)52nd percentile+10 vs school
Male (2026)45th percentile+3 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)36th percentile-6 vs school
White (2026)25th percentile-18 vs school
Middle school
Female (2026)87th percentile+19 vs school
Male (2026)56th percentile-12 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)40th percentile-28 vs school
White (2026)33rd percentile-35 vs school
By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?
Science70%~ state avg
Reading66%+10 vs state
Mathematics49%-11 vs state

3.0
4 ratings · 4 written reviews
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What people are saying
by a parent
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Open Quote Kindergarten is great! After that it goes down hill fast. The teachers are condescending, Especially the 4th grade. She has no problem cutting off your conversation when you are not saying what she wants to hear. Our son has been going here for 4 1/2 years and we will be taking him out in the middle of the school year because it has gotten so bad. She shows favoritism to her daughter who is in her class this year. There is very little experiential learning, that we were looking forward to and is the reason we started our son's education here. The individualized attention they claim is nearly non existent. The principal has no clue as to safe conditions during the winter. When other schools in the area are closed due to weather he will have the school remain open at risk of student safety. We are very disappointed with how the school is turning out. Each year we had hoped things would get better, but it seems to be going the other way and we will not subject our son to inferior education and teachers. Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, March 28, 2011

Open Quote It is real funny that they accuse the staff of being a clique. This whole thing is about who goes to who's church and being social buddies. Pay no attention to the wannabes. This stuff is over. There is a small group of parents that are TRICKING other parents that do not know better. My family has been at MDCS school for years. Hands on learning is going on at MDCS school. The "EL" school thing is not a new problem. Lots of the teachers are "EL" trained. All the teachers use hands on "experiential" learning in the classes. Just ask.

We have been called and talked at by these people trying to get us to pull our kids out but their problems just keep on changing. None of these people ever gave me the time of day. They make a good point but then it just turns into GOSSIP. Their problem can be heard by joining the parents group but where are they at the meetings? The parents should support the school and request a meeting when they have problems. A small snobby group prefers to GOSSIP and burn up the phone lines. They will not even talk to me anymore just because I do not agree. Even my husband VOLUNTEERS sometimes. I do not ever see these parents doing a thing at the school. I feel real bad for the teachers. They do not have to listen to this baloney.

The parents group has never played games until these people were TRICKED by other people. Now they have changed the parents group and it looks good. We heard so many crazy LIES last summer we could not hardly stand it. We found out what was going on. A few nutty parents were throwing a fit at the board meetings. All of these people look like they have other problems going on. It is just SHAMEFUL really. Everyone at the school is real nice and they will hear your problems.

The principal is strong, the board is strong, my kids are happy and MDCS is going great. My kids love Mr. Carter! The school wants parent involvement not a parent soap opera. Shame on you for saying bad things about my children's school! Look at the example you set. For the children's sake, you should play it fair and not lie on the internet. Maybe you might feel better if you talked to a professional. SAVE THE DRAMA FOR YOUR MAMA! Close Quote


by a parent
Friday, December 10, 2010

Open Quote Really disappointing! Does not live up to it's claims to be experiential and a community. Curriculum is poor and unsupervised. Middle school is a joke. The director has anger issues and the board is dysfunctional. Very disrespectful to parents with concerns. Stay away from this place if you value your child's education. Close Quote


Facebook Profile Picture by a parent on FaceBook
Sunday, August 22, 2010

Open Quote My son is 6 years old and attends MDCS! The teachers are wonderful and supportive. Last year he was very sick and missed several days. One teacher took it upon herself to bring his schoolwork and everything he needed to our house so that I wouldn't have to leave his side. I could never thank all the wonderful people who make up Mountain Discovery Charter School. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Mountain Discovery

Mountain Discovery ranks 861st of 1492 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Students at Mountain Discovery are 79% White, 9% Two or more races, 8% American Indian, 2% African American, 1% Asian, 1% Hispanic.

In the 2024-25 school year, 221 students attended Mountain Discovery.

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Latest North Carolina data All new data »
2017–18 through 2025–26 attendance data & graduation ratesSep 2, 2026
2025–26 EOC & EOG test scoresSep 2, 2026
2016–17 through 2024–25 graduation ratesSep 3, 2025
2024–25 EOC & EOG test scoresSep 3, 2025


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.

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