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Shining Rock Classical Academy

Public, Charter, Alternative Grades K-12
734th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,490 North Carolina Alternative Schools
Better than 51% of North Carolina alternative schools
Summary

Shining Rock Classical Academy is a public charter school located in Waynesville, North Carolina, serving 630 students from kindergarten to 11th grade. As an alternative school, it follows a classical education model focused on the liberal arts and sciences.

Shining Rock Classical Academy has consistently maintained high four-year graduation rates, ranging from 84.6% to 87.7% over the past five school years, outperforming the state average. The school also excels in mathematics and science, with 5th and 8th grade students significantly outperforming the state average. However, the school's reading proficiency rates are more variable, with some grades performing above the state average and others below. Additionally, the school faces challenges in some End-of-Course exams, particularly in Biology and Math I/III, where proficiency rates are lower than the state average.

Shining Rock Classical Academy's relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 11.9 to 14 students per teacher over the past three school years, may contribute to a more personalized learning environment for students. Unfortunately, without data on nearby schools, it is difficult to assess how the school's performance compares to its local competitors or the broader educational landscape in the Waynesville area.

616
Students ?
13.0
Student/teacher ratio ?
22%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 2150 Russ Avenue
       Waynesville, NC  28786

(828) 476-5150

District: Shining Rock Classical Academy

Racial breakdown:

White:
84.9%
Hispanic:
4.7%
Two or more races:
3.6%
more
 See top rated North Carolina elementary schools

 Compare Shining Rock Classical Academy to nearby alternative schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Declining — 68th percentile in 2021 → 39th in 2025
Strengths
Above the North Carolina median (51st percentile)
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped — down 29 percentile points since 2021
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
!Math III scores 31 pts below the North Carolina average
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school53%
North Carolina avg55%
Elementary school
734th of 1,490
North Carolina public elementary schools ?
Top 49%▼ down 7 pts since 2017
From top 42% (2017) to top 49% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
Middle school
472nd of 773
North Carolina public middle schools ?
Bottom 39%▼ down 39 pts since 2017
From top 22% (2017) to bottom 39% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Middle Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
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
202550.9734 of 149050.7%★★★☆☆
202444.4849 of 150543.6%★★☆☆☆
202357.7626 of 150258.3%★★★☆☆
202257.4624 of 151458.8%★★★☆☆
202164.9483 of 148967.6%★★★☆☆
201944.3855 of 147342.0%★★☆☆☆
201839.1935 of 143434.8%★★☆☆☆
201758.1607 of 142957.5%★★★☆☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202240.7337 of 63446.8%★★☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202544.6824 of 145143.2%★★☆☆☆
202438.4940 of 145535.4%★★☆☆☆
202360.2558 of 145961.8%★★★☆☆
202270.7361 of 145875.2%★★★★☆
202171.0357 of 144075.2%★★★★☆
201939.3921 of 142435.3%★★☆☆☆
201848.8769 of 140545.3%★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202540.1913 of 143736.5%★★☆☆☆
202440.2921 of 145036.5%★★☆☆☆
202353.5633 of 143755.9%★★★☆☆
202254.2579 of 136657.6%★★★☆☆
202162.3382 of 132971.3%★★★★☆
201930.91038 of 136123.7%★☆☆☆☆
201824.71106 of 133217.0%★☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202554.0647 of 145055.4%★★★☆☆
202450.3740 of 146449.5%★★☆☆☆
202350.8728 of 146150.2%★★★☆☆
202241.3873 of 146440.4%★★☆☆☆
202156.9595 of 144458.8%★★★☆☆
201949.3760 of 143046.9%★★☆☆☆
201834.41013 of 141328.3%★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202522.9732 of 82110.8%★☆☆☆☆
202438.3475 of 80140.7%★★☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202533.3854 of 117227.1%★☆☆☆☆
202421.8999 of 116614.3%★☆☆☆☆
202334.6846 of 118328.5%★☆☆☆☆
202238.4785 of 119434.3%★★☆☆☆
202148.3599 of 117248.9%★★☆☆☆
201921.21045 of 118311.7%★☆☆☆☆
201818.81075 of 11788.7%☆☆☆☆☆
Middle school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202539.8472 of 77338.9%★★☆☆☆
202457.4310 of 79360.9%★★★☆☆
202353.9348 of 78455.6%★★★☆☆
202265.3244 of 78669.0%★★★☆☆
202172.5186 of 74174.9%★★★★☆
201967.0232 of 73768.5%★★★☆☆
201867.3220 of 69168.2%★★★☆☆
201775.1150 of 69478.4%★★★★☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202547.6382 of 73347.9%★★☆☆☆
202466.3219 of 73870.3%★★★★☆
202371.1180 of 73175.4%★★★★☆
202266.7217 of 73370.4%★★★★☆
202165.1219 of 70669.0%★★★☆☆
201969.2193 of 68471.8%★★★★☆
201864.1244 of 65662.8%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202535.0490 of 72932.8%★★☆☆☆
202459.1265 of 74364.3%★★★☆☆
202345.4379 of 73548.4%★★☆☆☆
202262.4196 of 68971.6%★★★★☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202530.1522 of 73328.8%★☆☆☆☆
202445.6406 of 75145.9%★★☆☆☆
202336.3480 of 74735.7%★★☆☆☆
202262.9250 of 74866.6%★★★☆☆
202175.4155 of 71178.2%★★★★☆
201959.6274 of 69760.7%★★★☆☆
201866.1222 of 66566.6%★★★☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202516.1473 of 4781.0%☆☆☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankNorth Carolina percentileRating
202521.7545 of 64916.0%★☆☆☆☆
202434.2453 of 65230.5%★★☆☆☆
202332.0472 of 65628.0%★☆☆☆☆
202250.9314 of 65852.3%★★★☆☆
202152.8278 of 63256.0%★★★☆☆
201951.8296 of 62452.6%★★★☆☆
201840.5388 of 59634.9%★★☆☆☆
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
Male (2025)55th percentile+5 vs school
Disabled (2022)47th percentile-12 vs school
Female (2025)43rd percentile-8 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)36th percentile-14 vs school
White (2025)27th percentile-24 vs school
Special Education (2025)11th percentile-40 vs school
Middle school
Female (2025)48th percentile+9 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)33rd percentile-6 vs school
Male (2025)29th percentile-10 vs school
White (2025)16th percentile-23 vs school
Special Education (2025)1st percentile-38 vs school
By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?
Science72%+11 vs state
English II62%+3 vs state
Reading51%~ state avg
Mathematics50%-7 vs state
Math I38%+3 vs state
Math III35%-31 vs state
Biology29%-19 vs state

3.3
3 ratings · 3 written reviews
51
41
30
20
11
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What people are saying
by a parent
Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Open Quote Our son goes here. We like it and have no complaints. Looking forward to the new building. Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, August 3, 2020

Open Quote My daughter has attended this school since kindergarten and has had a wonderful experience since the first day that she started. The teachers she has had, have incorporated unique and terrific lessons including field trips that public schools are not able to provide since their classroom sizes are much larger. Each grade only has 12 to 25 students are each student is shown the care and attention they need. Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, March 11, 2019

Open Quote We were here for about a month to each there own this school was not for us. For me, as a parent, these were the cons and pros of this school. I am writing this review for my community who I know was curious about this school and what it had to offer this school was not for us but that does not mean it is not for you I say to each there own you never know your experience me be different than our Pros:Nice and clean school environment,Uniforms no worrying about what other kids were wearing, You pay 35$ online for school supplies and the school does the shopping, Lunches paid for online, Very easy to unenroll your child or children Cons: The setup and functionality of the school could have been better thought out the car line, schools main parking lot, and children’s play/social area are too intermingled. For example, if you show up at the school during lunch time you have to drive thru the school’s car line to access schools main parking lot and there are kids everywhere your other option is to park at the church next door and walk through the big grassy field where the kids play and threw the car line. So, my personal opinion is the set up is not very user-friendly, There “Catered school lunches” are not kid approved or at least not by my kiddos the only day the kids liked were pizza Fridays and the pizza came from Angelo’s. The lunches are 3.50 for a regular size lunch and 4.50 for a large. And the lunches do not come with anything to drink so you have to send your kid to school with water or the have access to the water fountain. You have to order lunches by Fridays at a certain time or you won't get anything and you are responsible for packing their lunch for that week, I noticed that the turn over rate for staff at this school is that you would see at a fast food place or a nursing home for example just in the month my 4th grader was there his teacher was fired and he got a new one which is concerning as a parent because stability is important part of children’s life, What they build you up to believe and get excited about with this school is not so great the routine at this school is very bland honestly, I feel that the education and experience you get in our public-school system is more then what is offered here. The best I can say is it just falls flat, Just my personal experience but if your child has behavioral issues they are not equipped to handle them. I feel like our local schools have greater resources to handle these kinds of issues and more, The sports they offer are a joke my 8th grader joined cross country and the coach taught them by showing them YouTube videos she had never been a coach or participated in cross country my son had, and she was asking for his help no big deal but it was not advanced enough for him personally ,The school counselor if your child wants to speak to them they do not have the access just to walk to there office like in public school there is a box at the end of the hall and your child has to write a note and drop it in my son did, I personally called and asked for her to talk to him anything I was told would happen regarding the counselor never did in a month my son was never addressed by her as I was told would be, The school has a clique and either you fit into this clique or you do not but for me life is hard enough to worry about whether me or my children are going to fit into your clique or as they word it “there Community” if your child does not fit into there clique you are made to feel unwelcome. They say your welcome but their actions and words prove otherwise, The school constantly Talks about their core values especially if your child gets into trouble “it’s your child is not following our core values” (which are Integrity, respect, compassion, responsibility, wisdom, and leadership) But I Found that these core values were not being followed by the staff themselves. The administration at this school was so unprofessional at times when handling situations and made some unnecessary comments to my children while they were there. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Shining Rock Classical Academy

Shining Rock Classical Academy ranks 734th of 1490 North Carolina alternative schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Students at Shining Rock Classical Academy are 85% White, 5% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 3% American Indian, 2% Asian, 2% African American.

In the 2024-25 school year, 616 students attended Shining Rock Classical Academy.


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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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