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Haywood Early College

Public Grades 9-12

8^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 99% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Haywood Early College is a small, public early-college high school in Clyde, North Carolina, serving 177 students in grades 9–12 in the mountains west of Asheville, where students can earn college credits while working toward their diploma. The school is currently ranked #8 out of 662 high schools in North Carolina, placing it in the 99th percentile with a 5-star rating. That is not a one-year spike. This school has finished in the top 20 statewide for six consecutive years, including a #1 ranking during the 2020–2021 school year, and that track record of consistency is arguably more impressive than any single year’s results.

Academically, the school reported 100% proficiency on every End-of-Course exam in the latest testing cycle, covering Biology, English II, Math I, and Math III. That far outpaces both the Haywood County Schools district as a whole and North Carolina state averages. Subgroup results tell the same story: economically disadvantaged students, who make up roughly 98% of the student body, rank #11 out of more than 600 high schools statewide. Attendance is another strength. Chronic absenteeism has stayed well below district and state rates for four consecutive years, sitting at 14.0% in 2024–2025 compared with 24.2% across North Carolina, and the school’s most recent graduation rate stands at 94.9%.

The comparison with nearby schools makes the achievement even clearer. Tuscola High, just over a mile away, ranks #216 out of 662, while Pisgah High ranks #160. Central Haywood High sits in the bottom 2% statewide. Even Jackson County Early College, a comparable early-college program about 20 miles away with a strong 4-star rating, ranks #95. Given its small size, high poverty rate, and lower-than-average per-student spending, Haywood Early College’s top-10 performance makes it one of the most compelling examples of school effectiveness in North Carolina.

177

Students ?

39.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

Community Eligibility

All students receive free meals (2024-25) ?

185 Freedlander Drive
Clyde, NC 28721

(828) 565-4000

District: Haywood County Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

85.3%

Hispanic:

9.0%

Two or more races:

5.1%

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Compare Haywood Early College to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 100th percentile in 2021 → 99th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (100% vs 60% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 1% of North Carolina high schools

Worth a look

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

!Large classes — about 39 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school100%

District avg73%

North Carolina avg60%

8^th of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 1%▼ down 1 pts since 2021

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

64^th of 246Haywood 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	94.7	8 of 662	98.8%	★★★★★
2025	95.4	20 of 641	96.9%	★★★★★
2024	96.4	8 of 640	98.8%	★★★★★
2023	96.3	6 of 626	99.0%	★★★★★
2022	97.1	4 of 621	99.4%	★★★★★
2021	98.5	1 of 594	99.8%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	94.8	5 of 629	99.2%	★★★★★
2025	94.7	15 of 610	97.5%	★★★★★
2024	95.8	10 of 602	98.3%	★★★★★
2023	95.8	6 of 588	99.0%	★★★★★
2022	97.2	2 of 594	99.7%	★★★★★

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	74.1	79 of 407	80.6%	★★★★☆
2025	80.5	28 of 412	93.2%	★★★★★
2024	78.7	36 of 403	91.1%	★★★★★
2023	80.8	53 of 403	86.8%	★★★★☆
2022	77.8	54 of 398	86.4%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	97.0	11 of 620	98.2%	★★★★★
2025	95.3	52 of 606	91.4%	★★★★★
2024	97.9	19 of 613	96.9%	★★★★★
2023	97.4	21 of 597	96.5%	★★★★★
2022	99.8	1 of 544	99.8%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	94.3	21 of 624	96.6%	★★★★★
2025	94.4	38 of 601	93.7%	★★★★★
2024	96.4	14 of 607	97.7%	★★★★★
2023	96.0	22 of 602	96.3%	★★★★★
2022	96.6	17 of 585	97.1%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	92.6	9 of 551	98.4%	★★★★★
2025	92.8	23 of 542	95.8%	★★★★★
2024	94.2	16 of 553	97.1%	★★★★★
2023	93.7	27 of 537	95.0%	★★★★★
2022	95.3	9 of 534	98.3%	★★★★★

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)

Female (2026)99th percentile~ school

White (2026)98th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)98th percentile~ school

Male (2026)97th percentile~ school

Gifted and Talented (2026)81st percentile-18 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Biology100%+42 vs state

English II100%+35 vs state

Math I100%+58 vs state

Math III100%+31 vs state

5.0

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1★0

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Schools Near Haywood Early College

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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 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th 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
Haywood Early College	Public	9-12	185 Freedlander Drive	Clyde	28721	Haywood County	Haywood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 565-4000	177	4	39.4	—	151 (85.3%)	1 (0.6%)	16 (9.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (5.1%)	94.7	8^th of 662 public high schools	98.8%		95.4	20^th of 641 public high schools	96.9%	12	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0											$7,730	$690	$7,040
Tuscola High	Public	9-12	564 Tuscola School Rd	Waynesville	28786	Haywood County	Haywood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 456-2408	873	43	20.3	—	725 (83.0%)	16 (1.8%)	93 (10.7%)	7 (0.8%)	5 (0.6%)	2 (0.2%)	25 (2.9%)	65.5	216^th of 662 public high schools	67.4%		62.6	214^th of 641 public high schools	66.6%	2	62.2	71.7	67.1	78.5											$9,911	$860	$9,050
Central Haywood High	Public	9-12	62 Joy Lane	Waynesville	28786	Haywood County	Haywood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 627-9944	63	7	8.5	93.7%	48 (76.2%)	2 (3.2%)	10 (15.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (3.2%)	2.1	649^th of 662 public high schools	2.0%		4.6	622^nd of 641 public high schools	3.0%	27	12.9	5.9		27.8											$18,725	$2,409	$16,316
Pisgah High	Public	9-12	1 Black Bear Drive	Canton	28716	Haywood County	Haywood County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 646-3440	859	40	21.4	—	702 (81.7%)	11 (1.3%)	111 (12.9%)	6 (0.7%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	24 (2.8%)	75.3	160^th of 662 public high schools	75.8%		79.3	137^th of 641 public high schools	78.6%	23	70.1	76.6	76.3	86.1											$9,758	$969	$8,789
Enka High	Public	9-12	475 Enka Lake Road	Candler	28715	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 670-5000	1,051	64	16.4	—	710 (67.6%)	40 (3.8%)	266 (25.3%)	5 (0.5%)	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	26 (2.5%)	31.9	466^th of 662 public high schools	29.6%		38.7	387^th of 641 public high schools	39.6%	79	53.8	57.7	21.4	58.2											$9,892	$617	$9,276
Jackson Community School	Public	9-12	3770 Skyland Drive	Sylva	28779	Jackson County	Jackson County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 586-4328	50	4	14.0	88.0%	38 (76.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (14.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (6.0%)	1.9	652^nd of 662 public high schools	1.5%		4.1	625^th of 641 public high schools	2.5%	27	13.6	14.3	539.3												$26,010	$1,858	$24,152
The Franklin School of Innovation	Public, Charter	5-12	61 Innovation Dr	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	The Franklin School of Innovation	Yes	No	No	Yes	(828) 318-8140	717	56	12.9	37.8%	567 (79.1%)	25 (3.5%)	73 (10.2%)	6 (0.8%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (6.3%)	55.1	285^th of 662 public high schools	56.9%		55.3	261^st of 641 public high schools	59.3%	24	63.8	74.7	34.8	75.7	41.0	65.7	58.6	31.9	57.8	61.8	57.6	71.0	57.3	68.1
Erwin High	Public	9-12	60 Lees Creek Road	Asheville	28806	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 232-4251	1,013	69	14.6	—	481 (47.5%)	94 (9.3%)	359 (35.4%)	4 (0.4%)	5 (0.5%)	23 (2.3%)	47 (4.6%)	15.4	582^nd of 662 public high schools	12.1%		17.7	541^st of 641 public high schools	15.6%	41	35.7	40.7	23.4	46.8											$10,603	$744	$9,859
Smoky Mountain High School	Public	9-12	100 Smoky Mountain Drive	Sylva	28779	Jackson County	Jackson County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 586-2177	881	42	21.1	97.7%	585 (66.4%)	8 (0.9%)	185 (21.0%)	6 (0.7%)	49 (5.6%)	1 (0.1%)	47 (5.3%)	44.7	370^th of 662 public high schools	44.1%		47.2	327^th of 641 public high schools	49.0%	43	55.9	55.6	37.2	77.7											$11,017	$880	$10,137
Jackson County Early College	Public	9-12	404 College Drive	Sylva	28779	Jackson County	Jackson County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 339-4499	113	2	47.0	97.3%	74 (65.5%)	2 (1.8%)	18 (15.9%)	4 (3.5%)	6 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (8.0%)	87.5	95^th of 662 public high schools	85.6%		80.7	133^rd of 641 public high schools	79.3%	38	93.8	87.1	100.0	88.6											$7,254	$111	$7,144

Frequently Asked Questions about Haywood Early College

What district is Haywood Early College in?

Haywood County Schools

How many students attend Haywood Early College?

In the 2024-25 school year, 177 students attended Haywood Early College.

What is the racial makeup of Haywood Early College?

Students at Haywood Early College are 85% White, 9% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races.

Is Haywood Early College a good school?

Yes! Haywood Early College is one of the best high schools in the state. It ranks 8^th of 662 North Carolina high schools.

Rate Haywood Early College!

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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.