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Johnston County Schools Career Technical

Public Grades 9-12

19^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 97% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Johnston County Schools Career Technical is a small, specialized public high school in Smithfield, NC, serving 241 students in grades 9–12 as part of Johnston County Public Schools. Despite its modest size, it ranks as one of the strongest-performing high schools in the state — placing 19th out of 662 schools statewide in 2025–26, which is the 97th percentile. That puts it far above every traditional high school in the area. Smithfield-Selma High ranks 469th, South Johnston High 414th, Princeton High 372nd, and North Johnston High 380th. Corinth Holders High, Cleveland High, Clayton High, West Johnston High, and Rosewood High all sit in the 37th–60th percentiles. Only Johnston County Early College Academy, which shares its campus, comes close with a 95th-percentile ranking.

Parents may assume a career-focused school sacrifices academic testing, but the results here are nearly perfect. In 2025–26, 99.9% of students scored proficient in Biology, 95.8% in English II, and 100% in Math III — while district averages ranged from roughly 57% to 69%. In 2023–24, 100% of students were proficient in Math I compared to a 36.9% state average. These outcomes are especially striking given that the school serves a high-poverty population, with a reported free/reduced lunch rate near 99% in recent years.

A few caveats matter for interpretation. The free/reduced lunch rate jumped from about 41% in 2022–23 to roughly 98% the next year, almost certainly reflecting a change in meal-eligibility reporting rather than a sudden economic shift. Likewise, an unusually high reported student-teacher ratio of 41-to-1 in 2024–25 points to shared or lab-based instructional staffing rather than a typical classroom comparison. The one area worth watching is the gifted and talented subgroup, which slipped from the 94th percentile in 2024–25 to the 76th percentile in 2025–26 — still above average, but a notable dip that could reflect the small size of that group. Graduation rate and chronic absenteeism data are not available for this school in the reporting dataset.

241

Students ?

41.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

98.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

245 College Road
Smithfield, NC 27577

(919) 464-2303

District: Johnston County Public Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

41.9%

Hispanic:

40.7%

African American:

12.9%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Johnston County Schools Career Technical to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 95th percentile in 2021 → 97th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (99% vs 64% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 3% of North Carolina high schools

Worth a look

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

!Large classes — about 41 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school99%

District avg63%

North Carolina avg64%

19^th of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 3%▲ up 2 pts since 2021

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

98^th of 246Johnston County Public 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	93.7	19 of 662	97.1%	★★★★★
2025	95.5	17 of 641	97.3%	★★★★★
2024	95.8	13 of 640	98.0%	★★★★★
2023	95.0	25 of 626	96.0%	★★★★★
2022	92.6	52 of 621	91.6%	★★★★★
2021	95.4	27 of 594	95.5%	★★★★★

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	98.1	16 of 440	96.4%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	93.1	18 of 629	97.1%	★★★★★
2025	95.2	9 of 610	98.5%	★★★★★
2024	95.4	13 of 602	97.8%	★★★★★
2023	94.1	28 of 588	95.2%	★★★★★
2022	88.3	74 of 594	87.5%	★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	73.5	98 of 407	75.9%	★★★★☆
2025	80.9	25 of 412	93.9%	★★★★★
2024	78.8	30 of 403	92.6%	★★★★★
2023	81.1	45 of 403	88.8%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	96.0	25 of 474	94.7%	★★★★★
2025	97.2	16 of 462	96.5%	★★★★★
2024	98.2	11 of 454	97.6%	★★★★★
2023	97.4	25 of 449	94.4%	★★★★★
2022	93.6	36 of 436	91.7%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	96.2	21 of 620	96.6%	★★★★★
2025	97.3	17 of 606	97.2%	★★★★★
2024	97.4	25 of 613	95.9%	★★★★★
2023	97.3	23 of 597	96.1%	★★★★★
2022	96.3	35 of 544	93.6%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	94.0	28 of 624	95.5%	★★★★★
2025	95.4	24 of 601	96.0%	★★★★★
2024	95.7	27 of 607	95.6%	★★★★★
2023	95.1	39 of 602	93.5%	★★★★★
2022	93.5	56 of 585	90.4%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	91.9	12 of 551	97.8%	★★★★★
2025	93.5	16 of 542	97.0%	★★★★★
2024	92.9	27 of 553	95.1%	★★★★★
2023	92.8	33 of 537	93.9%	★★★★★
2022	88.9	59 of 534	89.0%	★★★★☆

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)

White (2026)98th percentile~ school

Female (2026)97th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)97th percentile~ school

African American (2025)96th percentile~ school

Male (2026)96th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2026)95th percentile~ school

Gifted and Talented (2026)76th percentile-21 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Math III100%+31 vs state

Biology100%+41 vs state

English II96%+31 vs state

★

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Schools Near Johnston County Schools Career Technical

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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 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 6th 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
Johnston County Schools Career Technical	Public	9-12	245 College Road	Smithfield	27577	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 464-2303	241	6	41.1	98.8%	101 (41.9%)	31 (12.9%)	98 (40.7%)	3 (1.2%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	6 (2.5%)	93.7	19^th of 662 public high schools	97.1%		95.5	17^th of 641 public high schools	97.3%	2	99.9	95.8		100.0								$7,440	$137	$7,303
Johnston County Early College Academy	Public	9-12	245 College Rd	Smithfield	27577	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 464-2314	251	7	34.9	98.8%	142 (56.6%)	22 (8.8%)	72 (28.7%)	5 (2.0%)	3 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.8%)	93	33^rd of 662 public high schools	95.0%		94.1	34^th of 641 public high schools	94.7%	1	100.0	100.0		96.5								$6,903	$137	$6,766
Smithfield-Selma High	Public	9-12	700 M. Durwood Stephenson Park	Smithfield	27577	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 934-5191	1,548	86	17.9	99.8%	290 (18.7%)	398 (25.7%)	793 (51.2%)	13 (0.8%)	4 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (3.2%)	31.6	469^th of 662 public high schools	29.2%		27.3	479^th of 641 public high schools	25.3%	10	50.6	45.7	42.4	58.5								$10,069	$868	$9,200
North Johnston High	Public	9-12	5915 US Hwy 301 N	Kenly	27542	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 284-2031	788	40	19.8	98.2%	376 (47.7%)	75 (9.5%)	316 (40.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (2.7%)	43.3	380^th of 662 public high schools	42.6%		40	376^th of 641 public high schools	41.3%	4	47.9	62.2	41.4	74.6								$10,995	$811	$10,184
Princeton High	Public	6-12	101 Dr Donnie H Jones Jr Blvd	Princeton	27569	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 936-5011	988	52	19.1	99.2%	626 (63.4%)	90 (9.1%)	223 (22.6%)	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (4.6%)	44.6	372^nd of 662 public high schools	43.8%		47.8	319^th of 641 public high schools	50.2%	53	50.9	53.6	53.0	71.9	65.8	61.9	60.0	57.0	55.1	54.8	71.1	$9,669	$525	$9,144
Cleveland High	Public	9-12	1892 Polenta Rd	Clayton	27520	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 934-2455	1,889	80	23.5	98.7%	933 (49.4%)	369 (19.5%)	464 (24.6%)	28 (1.5%)	2 (0.1%)	2 (0.1%)	91 (4.8%)	55.6	283^rd of 662 public high schools	57.3%		52.4	277^th of 641 public high schools	56.8%	6	51.2	66.6	65.7	78.0								$7,646	$466	$7,180
South Johnston High	Public	9-12	10381 US Hwy 301 S	Four Oaks	27524	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 894-3146	1,355	60	22.5	99.8%	642 (47.4%)	167 (12.3%)	485 (35.8%)	4 (0.3%)	3 (0.2%)	2 (0.1%)	52 (3.8%)	38.4	414^th of 662 public high schools	37.5%		39.4	382^nd of 641 public high schools	40.4%	32	41.7	61.8	41.6	70.2								$9,204	$547	$8,657
West Johnston High	Public	9-12	5935 Raleigh Road	Benson	27504	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 934-7333	1,563	66	23.6	99.2%	797 (51.0%)	209 (13.4%)	458 (29.3%)	13 (0.8%)	10 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	76 (4.9%)	46.7	351^st of 662 public high schools	47.0%		41.7	365^th of 641 public high schools	43.1%	14	61.7	66.7	35.7	65.4								$8,533	$535	$7,999
Clayton High	Public	9-12	600 S Fayetteville St	Clayton	27520	Johnston County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 553-4064	1,929	82	23.4	99.6%	722 (37.4%)	568 (29.4%)	502 (26.0%)	25 (1.3%)	5 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	106 (5.5%)	47.5	345^th of 662 public high schools	47.9%		43.4	347^th of 641 public high schools	45.9%	2	59.8	65.2	45.2	64.3								$7,541	$374	$7,166
Corinth Holders High	Public	9-12	6875 Applewhite Rd	Wendell	27591	Wake County	Johnston County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 365-4306	2,187	94	23.2	99.0%	1,198 (54.8%)	366 (16.7%)	491 (22.5%)	32 (1.5%)	9 (0.4%)	2 (0.1%)	89 (4.1%)	58.7	263^rd of 662 public high schools	60.3%		55.3	260^th of 641 public high schools	59.4%	3	69.6	69.6	43.1	74.1								$7,404	$393	$7,011

Frequently Asked Questions about Johnston County Schools Career Technical

Is Johnston County Schools Career Technical a good school?

Yes! Johnston County Schools Career Technical is one of the best high schools in the state. It ranks 19^th of 662 North Carolina high schools.

What district is Johnston County Schools Career Technical in?

Johnston County Public Schools

What is the racial makeup of Johnston County Schools Career Technical?

Students at Johnston County Schools Career Technical are 42% White, 41% Hispanic, 13% African American, 2% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

How many students attend Johnston County Schools Career Technical?

In the 2024-25 school year, 241 students attended Johnston County Schools Career Technical.

Rate Johnston County Schools Career Technical!

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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.