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Columbus Career and College Academy

Q: Is Columbus Career and College Academy a good school?

Columbus Career and College Academy ranks 133 rd of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

133^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 80% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Columbus Career and College Academy is a small public high school in Whiteville, North Carolina, serving about 230 students in grades 9–12 in the Columbus County region of rural southeastern North Carolina.

Despite serving a student body where roughly 98-99% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, the academy has become a clear standout. Its most recent state ranking places it 133rd out of 662 North Carolina high schools, at the 80th percentile, far ahead of every nearby comprehensive high school. For comparison, Whiteville High sits at the 55th percentile, while South Columbus High (32nd), East Columbus Junior-Senior High (19th), and West Columbus High (14th) all rank much lower. The school also posts far better test proficiency than its home district, Columbus County Schools, and the state overall. Most striking is Math I: about 94% of academy students scored proficient, compared to roughly 42% statewide. English II proficiency (83.3%) and Biology (80.9%) also lead the area by wide margins. The graduation rate reached 93.0% in 2024-2025, above the district rate of 88.5% and the state rate of 87.7%.

This academic success has come without extra spending or small class sizes. At about $6,813 per student, the academy spends thousands less than neighboring schools, and its student-teacher ratio of 18.4 is among the highest in the area. Chronic absenteeism, however, is a clear differentiator: only 14.4% of students were chronically absent in 2023-2024, less than half the state figure and well below the 33-41% rates at neighboring traditional high schools. The school has also improved steadily, climbing from the 44th percentile in 2022-2023 to the 80th percentile today. For parents in Columbus County looking for a high school that gets strong results for students facing economic disadvantage, Columbus Career and College Academy stands out as the clear local leader.

230

Students ?

18.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

Community Eligibility

All students receive free meals (2024-25) ?

4564 Chadbourn Hwy
Whiteville, NC 28472

(910) 788-6281

District: Columbus County Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

57.8%

Hispanic:

20.4%

African American:

17.8%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Columbus Career and College Academy to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 54th percentile in 2021 → 80th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (84% vs 60% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 20% of North Carolina high schools

✓93% graduate in 4 years — above the North Carolina average (88%)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school84%

District avg48%

North Carolina avg60%

133^rd of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 20%▲ up 26 pts since 2021

From top 46% (2021) to top 20% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

176^th of 246Columbus County Schools 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	81.3	133 of 662	79.9%	★★★★☆
2025	71.8	171 of 641	73.3%	★★★★☆
2024	56.1	255 of 640	60.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	40.7	348 of 626	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	44.7	324 of 621	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	49.5	276 of 594	53.5%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	67.9	101 of 440	77.0%	★★★★☆
2024	73.9	88 of 437	79.9%	★★★★☆
2023	42.3	211 of 434	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	39.9	224 of 430	47.9%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	81.4	120 of 629	80.9%	★★★★☆
2025	75.7	139 of 610	77.2%	★★★★☆
2024	52.3	274 of 602	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	42.9	332 of 588	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.8	361 of 594	39.2%	★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	9.5	397 of 412	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	72.4	107 of 462	76.8%	★★★★☆
2024	64.1	118 of 454	74.0%	★★★★☆
2023	70.2	101 of 449	77.5%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	89.0	93 of 620	85.0%	★★★★☆
2025	68.0	147 of 606	75.7%	★★★★☆
2024	58.1	197 of 613	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	44.3	285 of 597	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	41.6	277 of 544	49.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	77.9	144 of 624	76.9%	★★★★☆
2025	62.2	202 of 601	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.6	230 of 607	62.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	36.0	371 of 602	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	52.0	253 of 585	56.8%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	69.2	175 of 551	68.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	60.5	215 of 542	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	42.3	329 of 553	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	25.8	420 of 537	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	38.9	325 of 534	39.1%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)85th percentile+5 vs school

Female (2026)81st percentile~ school

African American (2025)77th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)77th percentile-3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)77th percentile+4 vs school

White (2026)68th percentile-12 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2025)4th percentile-70 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Math I94%+52 vs state

English II83%+19 vs state

Math III82%+13 vs state

Biology81%+22 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Monday, September 30, 2019

My son loves CCCA. FAIR BLUFF CAMPUS .HE SEEMS TO LIKE HIS CLASSES AND TEACHERS. He is looking forward to the challenge of College !!!!! Close Quote

Schools Near Columbus Career and College Academy

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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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Columbus Career and College Academy	Public	9-12	4564 Chadbourn Hwy	Whiteville	28472	Columbus County	Columbus County Schools	No	No	No	No	(910) 788-6281	230	12	18.4	—	133 (57.8%)	41 (17.8%)	47 (20.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.0%)	81.3	133^rd of 662 public high schools	79.9%		71.8	171^st of 641 public high schools	73.3%	38	80.9	83.3	94.1	81.5						$6,813	$326	$6,488
North Whiteville Academy	Public	6-12	310 S Martin Luther King Jr Av	Whiteville	28472	Columbus County	Whiteville City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 914-4161	16	5	3.2	81.3%	4 (25.0%)	11 (68.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (6.3%)								(n/a)										$24,391	$612	$23,779
Whiteville High	Public	9-12	413 N Lee Street	Whiteville	28472	Columbus County	Whiteville City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 914-4189	639	29	22.1	—	254 (39.7%)	240 (37.6%)	95 (14.9%)	6 (0.9%)	6 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (5.9%)	54	295^th of 662 public high schools	55.4%		42.7	353^rd of 641 public high schools	44.9%	58	61.4	69.1	37.2	84.4						$10,302	$1,532	$8,770
West Columbus High	Public	9-12	7294 Andrew Jackson Hwy SW	Cerro Gordo	28430	Columbus County	Columbus County Schools	No	No	No	No	(910) 654-6111	459	33	13.9	97.6%	205 (44.7%)	187 (40.7%)	33 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (2.8%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (4.4%)	16.6	572^nd of 662 public high schools	13.6%		18.8	529^th of 641 public high schools	17.5%	43	27.1	33.3	31.1	55.8						$11,672	$1,304	$10,369
South Columbus High	Public	9-12	40 Stallion Drive	Tabor City	28463	Columbus County	Columbus County Schools	No	No	No	No	(910) 653-4073	669	43	15.7	—	409 (61.1%)	157 (23.5%)	80 (12.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	18 (2.7%)	33.9	449^th of 662 public high schools	32.2%		29	463^rd of 641 public high schools	27.8%	14	52.1	50.4	39.7	58.0						$9,661	$1,025	$8,636
East Columbus Junior-Senior High	Public	7-12	32 Gator Lane	Lake Waccamaw	28450	Columbus County	Columbus County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 646-4094	576	34	17.0	—	152 (26.4%)	184 (31.9%)	106 (18.4%)	1 (0.2%)	71 (12.3%)	0 (0.0%)	62 (10.8%)	22.6	538^th of 662 public high schools	18.7%		27.8	474^th of 641 public high schools	26.1%	64	44.9	37.5	26.5	59.8	35.2	15.7	33.3	24.8	41.2	$10,383	$1,233	$9,149

Frequently Asked Questions about Columbus Career and College Academy

Is Columbus Career and College Academy a good school?

Columbus Career and College Academy ranks 133^rd of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What district is Columbus Career and College Academy in?

Columbus County Schools

What is the racial makeup of Columbus Career and College Academy?

Students at Columbus Career and College Academy are 58% White, 20% Hispanic, 18% African American, 3% Two or more races.

How many students attend Columbus Career and College Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 230 students attended Columbus Career and College Academy.

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Schools in Whiteville, NC

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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.