Williston Middle

Williston Middle is a public school serving 666 students in grades 6–8 in Wilmington, North Carolina’s New Hanover County Schools district, which has strong overall ratings compared with the rest of the state. However, Williston is a striking outlier within that district, ranking in the 9th statewide percentile with a 0-star rating, and serving an extremely high-poverty population, with more than 99 percent of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Chronic absenteeism is also a major challenge: roughly 42 percent of students were chronically absent in the most recent school year, nearly double the district and state averages, and far above the rates at every nearby middle school.

Academic proficiency at Williston falls dramatically below state averages in every subject and grade. For example, 7th grade reading proficiency is just 20 percent, compared with roughly 56 percent statewide, and 8th grade math proficiency is about 34 percent versus 53 percent statewide. What makes these numbers especially telling is the comparison with nearby schools serving equally high-poverty populations. Holly Shelter Middle, Myrtle Grove Middle, and Emma B Trask Middle all serve roughly 99 percent free or reduced-price lunch students, yet each ranks in the 57th–68th percentile statewide and posts proficiency averages 20–30 points higher than Williston’s. Even the lowest-ranked nearby school, Cape Fear Middle, sits at the 38th percentile, far above Williston’s 9th.

Williston’s challenges appear systemic, with low subgroup effectiveness across nearly every student population, but the data also show that high poverty does not have to predict low outcomes. Spending and staffing are not obvious explanations: Williston reported higher per-student funding than all comparable nearby schools and a favorable 14-to-1 student-teacher ratio. There is some good news: 8th grade math proficiency has nearly doubled since 2022–23, and chronic absenteeism has dropped substantially from its pandemic-era peak. Still, attendance remains stuck around 42 percent, and proficiency remains low in most grades and subjects. In the context of neighboring schools that are achieving much stronger results with similar demographics, Williston’s path forward will likely require focused attention on attendance, school climate, and instructional support rather than simply more money or smaller classes.