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Mayland Early College

Q: Is Mayland Early College a good school?

Mayland Early College ranks 109 th of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Q: How many students attend Mayland Early College?

In the 2024-25 school year, 113 students attended Mayland Early College.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Mayland Early College?

Students at Mayland Early College are 81% White, 10% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

Q: What schools feed into Mayland Early College?

Mayland Early College is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Gouge Primary Elementary : Greenlee Primary

Public Grades 9-12

109^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 84% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Mayland Early College is a small, high-performing public high school in Spruce Pine, NC, serving about 113 students in grades 9–12. In the 2025–2026 SchoolDigger ranking, it placed 109th out of 662 North Carolina high schools—the 84th percentile, earning 4 stars—and it has ranked in the low-80s to mid-90s percentiles for six straight years, peaking at 34th in 2022–2023. By comparison, Mitchell High, the other high school in Mitchell County Schools, ranked 385th, and the district overall sits in the 46th percentile statewide.

The gap in test scores is just as striking. On 2025–2026 End-of-Course exams, it posted 88.9% proficiency in Biology, 78.6% in English II, and 92.0% in Math III, versus district-wide rates of 68.9%, 63.0%, and 60.3%. Nearby Mitchell High scored 61.1% in English II, 65.6% in Biology, and just 52.5% in Math III—a 17-to-40-point gap across those subjects. The school also outpaced Avery County High, McDowell High School, and Mountain Heritage High in most subjects. Chronic absenteeism is a low 11.7%, less than half the state's 24.2%, and its 91.7% graduation rate tops both the district's 86.0% and the state's 87.7%.

These results are especially noteworthy because roughly 97% of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, yet the low-income subgroup still ranked in the 88th percentile statewide in 2024–2025. The school is part of a standout cluster of regional early colleges—McDowell Academy for Innovation ranks 25th and McDowell Early College ranks 89th—while larger traditional high schools in the area sit far lower. With small cohorts of about 113 students, some year-to-year swings are expected: Biology proficiency moved from 85% to 61.9% and back to 88.9% over three years. For parents, the consistent multi-year rankings are more meaningful than any single-year change, and the overall picture is a focused school delivering strong academic outcomes for a high-need population.

113

Students ?

23.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

97.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

264 Mayland Dr
Spruce Pine, NC 28777

(828) 766-2590

District: Mitchell County Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

80.5%

Hispanic:

9.7%

Two or more races:

6.2%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Mayland Early College to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 89th percentile in 2021 → 84th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (88% vs 64% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 16% of North Carolina high schools

✓92% graduate in 4 years — above the North Carolina average (88%)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 5 percentile points since 2021

!Large classes — about 23 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school88%

District avg65%

North Carolina avg64%

109^th of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 16%▼ down 5 pts since 2021

From top 11% (2021) to top 16% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

133^rd of 246Mitchell 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	84.6	109 of 662	83.5%	★★★★☆
2025	83.9	115 of 641	82.1%	★★★★☆
2024	84.6	113 of 640	82.3%	★★★★☆
2023	94.4	34 of 626	94.6%	★★★★★
2022	88.1	90 of 621	85.5%	★★★★☆
2021	90.3	68 of 594	88.6%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	84.4	102 of 629	83.8%	★★★★☆
2025	72.7	156 of 610	74.4%	★★★★☆
2024	83.9	111 of 602	81.6%	★★★★☆
2023	92.5	42 of 588	92.9%	★★★★★
2022	84.6	91 of 594	84.7%	★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2023	80.8	51 of 403	87.3%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	91.9	72 of 606	88.1%	★★★★☆
2024	79.0	120 of 613	80.4%	★★★★☆
2023	97.1	24 of 597	96.0%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	89.4	88 of 624	85.9%	★★★★☆
2025	91.0	77 of 601	87.2%	★★★★☆
2024	81.2	130 of 607	78.6%	★★★★☆
2023	96.5	14 of 602	97.7%	★★★★★
2022	82.6	115 of 585	80.3%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	85.4	85 of 551	84.6%	★★★★☆
2025	78.7	122 of 542	77.5%	★★★★☆
2024	76.2	142 of 553	74.3%	★★★★☆
2023	93.4	29 of 537	94.6%	★★★★★
2022	85.7	84 of 534	84.3%	★★★★☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)88th percentile+6 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2023)87th percentile-7 vs school

Male (2026)86th percentile~ school

White (2026)85th percentile~ school

Female (2026)84th percentile~ school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Math III92%+23 vs state

Biology89%+30 vs state

English II79%+14 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a student
Monday, January 16, 2023

I absolutely ADORE going to Mayland. There is about 12-15 people in a regular high school class, but for the convenience of the teachers, they have combined some classes to where there is about 20 students in a class. The staff are wonderful and always so eager to help you. I 100 recommend! Close Quote

Schools Near Mayland 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)	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 8th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Mayland Early College	Public	9-12	264 Mayland Dr	Spruce Pine	28777	Mitchell County	Mitchell County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 766-2590	113	5	23.2	97.3%	91 (80.5%)	1 (0.9%)	11 (9.7%)	3 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (6.2%)	84.6	109^th of 662 public high schools	83.5%		83.9	115^th of 641 public high schools	82.1%	6	88.9	78.6		92.0			$7,370	$209	$7,160
Mitchell High	Public	9-12	416 Ledger School Rd	Bakersville	28705	Mitchell County	Mitchell County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 766-3400	482	39	12.2	98.8%	396 (82.2%)	4 (0.8%)	68 (14.1%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.3%)	43.1	385^th of 662 public high schools	41.8%		23	506^th of 641 public high schools	21.1%	121	65.6	61.1	37.4	52.5			$11,982	$572	$11,410
Avery County High	Public	9-12	401 Avery County High School R	Newland	28657	Avery County	Avery County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 733-0151	542	27	20.2	99.3%	423 (78.0%)	1 (0.2%)	92 (17.0%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (3.7%)	27.1	499^th of 662 public high schools	24.6%		26.1	487^th of 641 public high schools	24.0%	12	40.9	53.5	14.9	65.5			$10,821	$537	$10,285
McDowell High School	Public	9-12	600 McDowell High School Dr	Marion	28752	McDowell County	McDowell County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 652-7920	1,379	88	15.6	98.8%	1,003 (72.7%)	50 (3.6%)	221 (16.0%)	13 (0.9%)	2 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	89 (6.5%)	38	420^th of 662 public high schools	36.6%		29	465^th of 641 public high schools	27.5%	45	53.9	52.3	37.1	68.4			$9,698	$1,036	$8,662
The Summit Academy	Public	6-12	75 Crawford St	Marion	28752	McDowell County	McDowell County Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(828) 652-1266	23	4	5.7	87.0%	20 (87.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (8.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (4.3%)	1.9	651^st of 662 public high schools	1.7%					(n/a)	15.4	14.3	536.7	537.6	< 5%	10.0
Mountain Heritage High	Public	9-12	333 Mtn Heritage HS Road	Burnsville	28714	Yancey County	Yancey County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 682-6103	642	47	13.6	98.9%	503 (78.3%)	1 (0.2%)	128 (19.9%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.2%)	62.7	234^th of 662 public high schools	64.7%		47.8	318^th of 641 public high schools	50.4%	84	81.6	77.6	39.8	69.8			$11,483	$884	$10,599
McDowell Early College	Public	9-12	54 College Drive	Marion	28752	McDowell County	McDowell County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 659-0411	241	12	19.7	98.8%	184 (76.3%)	5 (2.1%)	40 (16.6%)	3 (1.2%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.3%)	88.9	89^th of 662 public high schools	86.6%		93.2	48^th of 641 public high schools	92.5%	41	94.4	93.3	70.6	564.1			$7,400	$232	$7,168
McDowell Academy for Innovation	Public	9-12	54 College Drive	Marion	28752	McDowell County	McDowell County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 659-0411	158	7	22.5	98.1%	108 (68.4%)	5 (3.2%)	38 (24.1%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (3.8%)	93.4	25^th of 662 public high schools	96.2%		92.8	53^rd of 641 public high schools	91.7%	28	100.0	95.8	86.7	100.0			$24,717	$228	$24,489

Frequently Asked Questions about Mayland Early College

Is Mayland Early College a good school?

Mayland Early College ranks 109^th of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What district is Mayland Early College in?

Mitchell County Schools

How many students attend Mayland Early College?

In the 2024-25 school year, 113 students attended Mayland Early College.

What is the racial makeup of Mayland Early College?

Students at Mayland Early College are 81% White, 10% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

What schools feed into Mayland Early College?

Mayland Early College is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Gouge Primary
Elementary : Greenlee Primary

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NCNorth Carolina District Rankings

Schools in Spruce Pine, 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.