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Mayland Early College

Q: Is Mayland Early College a good school?

Mayland Early College ranks 115 th of 641 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

115^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 641 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 82% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Mayland Early College is a small public high school in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, serving grades 9-12 with a student population of 115. Despite its modest size, this school consistently outperforms the surrounding Mitchell County Schools district and the state of North Carolina in academic metrics.

Mayland Early College's students excel on end-of-course tests, with proficiency rates reaching as high as 89.3% in English II, compared to just 60.5% for the Mitchell County district and 59.6% for the state. The school's strong performance places it among the top 20% of high schools in North Carolina. Mayland Early College also maintains high graduation rates, ranging from 77.8% to 91.7% in recent years, significantly higher than the 87.7% rate at the nearby Mitchell High School. The school's success extends across different student subgroups, including female, male, white, and low-income students.

Interestingly, Mayland Early College achieves these exceptional results with a relatively low per-student spending of $7,370, compared to $11,982 at Mitchell High and $24,717 at McDowell Academy for Innovation. The school also maintains a higher student-teacher ratio than its peers, suggesting it has implemented effective instructional practices to support student learning. Mayland Early College's success serves as a model for other schools seeking to improve outcomes, particularly those serving high-need populations within the Mitchell County Schools district and the broader McDowell County Schools region.

113

Students ?

23.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$7,370

Per pupil spending ?

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 → 82nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (80% vs 53% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 18% of North Carolina high schools

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

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 7 percentile points since 2021

!Large classes — about 23 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school80%

District avg44%

North Carolina avg53%

115^th of 641

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 18%▼ down 6 pts since 2021

From top 11% (2021) to top 18% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 2High Schools in the Mitchell County Schools

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
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
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
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
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 (2025)87th percentile+5 vs school

White (2025)77th percentile-5 vs school

Female (2025)74th percentile-8 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?

English II89%+30 vs state

Math III87%+20 vs state

Math I75%+41 vs state

Biology62%+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

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				EOC Biology (2025)	EOC English II (2025)	EOC Math I (2025)	EOC Math III (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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	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	Avery 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%)	83.9	115^th of 641 public high schools	82.1%		84.6	113^th of 640 public high schools	82.3%	2	61.9	89.3	75.0	86.7	$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%)	23	506^th of 641 public high schools	21.1%		29.5	455^th of 640 public high schools	28.9%	51	28.1	54.7	23.5	32.2	$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%)	26.1	487^th of 641 public high schools	24.0%		31.1	441^st of 640 public high schools	31.1%	46	36.7	49.2	6.7	54.6	$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%)	29	465^th of 641 public high schools	27.5%		32.1	429^th of 640 public high schools	33.0%	36	40.4	43.5	21.1	58.7	$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%)								(n/a)		12.5		6.7
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%)	47.8	318^th of 641 public high schools	50.4%		62.9	217^th of 640 public high schools	66.1%	101	46.2	54.1	39.8	72.1	$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%)	93.2	48^th of 641 public high schools	92.5%		93.3	48^th of 640 public high schools	92.5%		77.8	95.2	83.8	100.0	$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%)	92.8	53^rd of 641 public high schools	91.7%		96.4	7^th of 640 public high schools	98.9%	46	76.5	95.1	86.8	97.6	$24,717	$228	$24,489

Frequently Asked Questions about Mayland Early College

What schools feed into Mayland Early College?

Mayland Early College is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Gouge Primary
Elementary : Greenlee Primary

What district is Mayland Early College in?

Mitchell County Schools

Is Mayland Early College a good school?

Mayland Early College ranks 115^th of 641 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

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.

How many students attend Mayland Early College?

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

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Schools in Spruce Pine, NC

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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.