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Orange Middle

Q: Is Orange Middle a good school?

Orange Middle ranks 196 th of 778 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

196^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 778 North Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 75% of North Carolina middle schools

Summary

Orange Middle School, serving 514 students in grades 6–8 in Hillsborough, NC, has established itself as a solid and improving academic performer within the Orange County Schools district. The school is the highest-performing traditional middle school in its district, ranking #196 out of 778 North Carolina middle schools and earning a 4-star rating. On the most recent state End-of-Grade (EOG) tests, Orange Middle surpassed both the district and state averages in every subject and grade level, with particularly strong results in 8th-grade science, where 79.4% of students scored proficient. Its performance is significantly ahead of its in-district peers, including Gravelly Hill Middle and A L Stanback Middle, continuing a steady upward trend since the pandemic.

While the school's overall achievements are notable, a closer look reveals important equity gaps in how different student groups are served. The school is highly effective for White and multiracial students, but its rankings for Hispanic, African American, English learner, and low-socioeconomic status students are considerably lower than its overall percentile. Another area of concern is chronic absenteeism, which has risen steadily from 12% in 2020–2021 to 23.2% in 2024–2025, now nearly matching the state average. These metrics indicate that while the school has strong potential, its success is not yet reaching all students equally, and attendance remains a key factor to watch.

In a regional context, Orange Middle finds itself in a competitive landscape. It clearly outperforms nearby Durham Public Schools, such as Lucas Middle and George L Carrington Middle, which serve more economically disadvantaged populations. However, it still trails higher-ranked schools in the wealthier Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools district, such as Smith Middle and Phillips Middle. Notably, Hawfields Middle in Alamance County, which serves a higher-poverty population with fewer resources, still manages to outrank Orange Middle, suggesting there are lessons to be learned from schools that achieve strong results under more challenging circumstances.

514

Students ?

13.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

43.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

308 Orange High Rd
Hillsborough, NC 27278-2058

(919) 732-6121

District: Orange County Schools

Students who attend Orange Middle usually attend:

High:

Orange High

Feeder schools for Orange Middle:

Elementary:	Pathways Elementary
	River Park Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

58.4%

Hispanic:

20.2%

African American:

13.4%

See top rated North Carolina middle schools

Compare Orange Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 77th percentile in 2016 → 75th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (67% vs 58% meeting standards)

✓Above the North Carolina median (75th percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school67%

District avg59%

North Carolina avg58%

196^th of 778

North Carolina public middle schools ?

Top 25%▼ down 3 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

69^th of 246Orange 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	72.3	196 of 778	74.8%	★★★★☆
2025	68.2	219 of 773	71.7%	★★★★☆
2024	65.0	249 of 793	68.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.8	286 of 784	63.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	60.1	292 of 786	62.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	53.2	325 of 741	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	64.7	248 of 737	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	71.5	176 of 691	74.5%	★★★★☆
2017	81.5	103 of 694	85.2%	★★★★☆
2016	73.6	157 of 692	77.3%	★★★★☆
2015	70.1	190 of 705	73.0%	★★★★☆
2014	72.3	150 of 627	76.1%	★★★★☆
2013	76.6	126 of 673	81.3%	★★★★☆
2012	72.5	171 of 662	74.2%	★★★★☆
2011	68.2	215 of 648	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2010	71.5	173 of 640	73.0%	★★★★☆
2009	64.4	241 of 630	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2008	71.2	164 of 620	73.5%	★★★★☆
2007	54.8	315 of 606	48.0%	★★☆☆☆
2006	56.6	298 of 598	50.2%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	36.2	353 of 553	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	42.5	299 of 546	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.1	378 of 560	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	39.0	328 of 559	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.6	400 of 550	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	33.0	369 of 533	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	37.2	348 of 519	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.6	255 of 494	48.4%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	21.5	408 of 449	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	19.5	454 of 478	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	38.8	306 of 504	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	64.9	80 of 475	83.2%	★★★★☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	26.1	307 of 363	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	39.6	202 of 371	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	21.3	322 of 356	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.7	302 of 318	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	73.5	177 of 731	75.8%	★★★★☆
2025	69.4	194 of 733	73.5%	★★★★☆
2024	61.8	256 of 738	65.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.0	281 of 731	61.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.0	334 of 733	54.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	49.9	335 of 706	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.9	249 of 684	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	72.0	169 of 656	74.2%	★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	59.2	222 of 465	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	68.6	109 of 458	76.2%	★★★★☆
2024	62.4	179 of 461	61.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	56.6	249 of 452	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.5	391 of 450	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.1	370 of 448	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	41.8	324 of 566	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.6	379 of 562	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.9	391 of 564	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	25.6	447 of 553	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.5	493 of 541	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.2	465 of 522	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.4	376 of 493	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.5	320 of 472	32.2%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	45.2	392 of 725	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	42.1	417 of 729	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	33.7	521 of 743	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.9	523 of 735	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.4	593 of 689	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.7	511 of 633	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.5	563 of 639	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	40.6	377 of 604	37.6%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	68.2	214 of 736	70.9%	★★★★☆
2025	64.1	236 of 733	67.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	65.3	227 of 751	69.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.9	276 of 747	63.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	64.6	237 of 748	68.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.7	293 of 711	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	64.2	247 of 697	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	67.9	204 of 665	69.3%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	74.2	65 of 333	80.5%	★★★★☆
2025	69.4	79 of 328	75.9%	★★★★☆
2024	67.0	85 of 306	72.2%	★★★★☆
2023	47.5	155 of 302	48.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	17.6	262 of 283	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	68.4	54 of 221	75.6%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	50.2	170 of 500	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	63.3	86 of 478	82.0%	★★★★☆
2024	35.5	284 of 473	40.0%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	74.9	145 of 644	77.5%	★★★★☆
2025	75.1	141 of 649	78.3%	★★★★☆
2024	67.2	189 of 652	71.0%	★★★★☆
2023	62.8	227 of 656	65.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	66.2	205 of 658	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	50.9	291 of 632	54.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	60.1	241 of 624	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	71.7	152 of 596	74.5%	★★★★☆

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)

Multi-racial (2026)80th percentile+6 vs school

White (2026)77th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2026)76th percentile~ school

Male (2026)71st percentile-4 vs school

Special Education (2026)66th percentile-9 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)52nd percentile-23 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)46th percentile-29 vs school

Hispanic (2026)43rd percentile-32 vs school

African American (2026)36th percentile-39 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)15th percentile-59 vs school

Disabled (2022)9th percentile-54 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Science79%+11 vs state

Mathematics66%+10 vs state

Reading63%+8 vs state

★

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Schools Near Orange Middle

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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)				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	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
Orange Middle	Public	6-8	308 Orange High Rd	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 732-6121	514	38	13.4	43.4%	300 (58.4%)	69 (13.4%)	104 (20.2%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (7.4%)	72.3	196^th of 778 public middle schools	74.8%		68.2	219^th of 773 public middle schools	71.7%	23	69.1	62.8	66.5	64.8	62.2	63.4	79.4	$10,665	$408	$10,256
A L Stanback Middle	Public	6-8	3700 NC 86 South	Hillsborough	27278	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 644-3200	648	45	14.4	57.7%	238 (36.7%)	69 (10.6%)	284 (43.8%)	12 (1.9%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (6.5%)	43.4	449^th of 778 public middle schools	42.3%		51.9	371^st of 773 public middle schools	52.0%	78	55.1	48.2	59.3	48.7	47.7	51.3	62.1	$11,425	$789	$10,636
Gravelly Hill Middle	Public	6-8	4801 West Ten Road	Efland	27243	Orange County	Orange County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 245-4050	415	31	13.4	56.4%	187 (45.1%)	86 (20.7%)	99 (23.9%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (7.7%)	51.3	387^th of 778 public middle schools	50.3%		48.3	399^th of 773 public middle schools	48.4%	12	65.3	44.8	49.2	55.6	52.3	51.1	78.8	$11,455	$480	$10,975
George L Carrington Middle	Public	6-8	227 Milton Road	Durham	27712	Durham County	Durham Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 560-3916	771	51	15.1	99.6%	93 (12.1%)	291 (37.7%)	326 (42.3%)	18 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (5.6%)	22.1	635^th of 778 public middle schools	18.4%		29	556^th of 773 public middle schools	28.1%	79	40.2	41.8	33.6	40.6	50.2	36.6	47.1	$10,263	$957	$9,306
Smith Middle	Public	6-8	9201 Seawell School Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 918-2145	763	56	13.6	22.4%	322 (42.2%)	104 (13.6%)	98 (12.8%)	170 (22.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	69 (9.0%)	87.1	76^th of 778 public middle schools	90.2%		88.3	67^th of 773 public middle schools	91.3%	9	78.5	75.5	77.7	73.5	74.6	76.7	80.9	$11,562	$338	$11,224
Phillips Middle	Public	6-8	606 N Estes Dr	Chapel Hill	27514	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 929-2188	600	52	11.4	27.0%	272 (45.3%)	86 (14.3%)	59 (9.8%)	131 (21.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	51 (8.5%)	83.5	102^nd of 778 public middle schools	86.9%		85	93^rd of 773 public middle schools	88.0%	9	76.1	71.6	70.9	67.0	76.2	71.6	82.7	$12,655	$480	$12,175
McDougle Middle	Public	6-8	900 Old Fayetteville Rd	Chapel Hill	27516	Orange County	Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 933-1556	659	57	11.6	27.6%	359 (54.5%)	69 (10.5%)	167 (25.3%)	17 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (7.1%)	80.2	129^th of 778 public middle schools	83.4%		84.8	98^th of 773 public middle schools	87.3%	31	79.6	75.3	56.4	76.3	74.4	68.0	75.1	$13,223	$311	$12,913
Brogden Middle	Public	6-8	1001 Leon Street	Durham	27704	Durham County	Durham Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 560-3906	753	45	16.8	99.5%	94 (12.5%)	253 (33.6%)	344 (45.7%)	21 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (5.4%)	28.7	572^nd of 778 public middle schools	26.5%		17.1	671^st of 773 public middle schools	13.2%	99	39.8	62.4	44.4	36.7	44.1	35.6	53.1	$12,887	$1,406	$11,481
Hawfields Middle	Public	6-8	1951 S Nc 119	Mebane	27302	Alamance County	Alamance-Burlington Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 563-5303	864	46	18.8	56.0%	338 (39.1%)	201 (23.3%)	223 (25.8%)	24 (2.8%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	76 (8.8%)	77.2	156^th of 778 public middle schools	79.9%		71.9	185^th of 773 public middle schools	76.1%	29	72.0	78.9	64.3	66.8	65.4	64.9	76.7	$8,568	$559	$8,009
Lucas Middle	Public	6-8	923 Snow Hill Road	Durham	27704	Durham County	Durham Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 560-3843	400	24	16.9	99.3%	47 (11.8%)	182 (45.5%)	150 (37.5%)	8 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.3%)	22.8	628^th of 778 public middle schools	19.3%		26.9	574^th of 773 public middle schools	25.7%	54	36.4	38.7	35.7	38.8	42.3	44.8	58.7	$11,258	$1,302	$9,956

Frequently Asked Questions about Orange Middle

What high school do graduates of Orange Middle attend?

Students who attend Orange Middle usually go on to attend Orange High

How many students attend Orange Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 514 students attended Orange Middle.

What district is Orange Middle in?

Orange County Schools

Is Orange Middle a good school?

Orange Middle ranks 196^th of 778 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Orange Middle?

Students at Orange Middle are 58% White, 20% Hispanic, 13% African American, 7% Two or more races.

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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.