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Salisbury High

Q: Is Salisbury High a good school?

Salisbury High ranks in the bottom 9.5% of North Carolina high schools.

Q: How many students attend Salisbury High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 930 students attended Salisbury High.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Salisbury High?

Students at Salisbury High are 43% African American, 34% Hispanic, 15% White, 6% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

Q: What schools feed into Salisbury High?

Salisbury High is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Overton Elementary

Public Grades 9-12

599^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 10% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Salisbury High is a public high school in Salisbury, NC, serving 930 students in grades 9–12 within the Rowan-Salisbury Schools district. For the 2025–26 school year, the school is ranked 599th out of 662 North Carolina high schools, placing it in the 10th percentile with a 0-star rating. Its academic performance, graduation rate, and attendance are all significantly below district and state averages, and nearly every student—99.68%—qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch.

The school's graduation rate is 79.5%, trailing the district rate of 86.6%, the state rate of 88.8%, and every other traditional high school in the surrounding area. Chronic absenteeism is a defining challenge: 53.0% of students were chronically absent in 2024–25, more than double the state average of 24.2% and well above the district rate of 34.2%. End-of-course proficiency rates are also far behind state averages. Biology proficiency is 36.5%, English II is 41.8%, Math I is 18.4%, and Math III is 24.6%, compared to state averages of 58.5%, 64.6%, 42.1%, and 68.9% respectively. Math stands out as the most acute weakness. On a positive note, proficiency did improve in every subject from the prior year.

The most encouraging comparison in the area is Carson High, located roughly 7.8 miles away in the same district. Carson serves an almost identical population—99.72% of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch—yet it ranks 298th out of 662 schools (55th percentile), graduates 92.7% of its students, and posts dramatically higher proficiency rates, including 91.5% in Biology and 65.5% in Math III. Rowan County Early College, less than 2 miles away, also demonstrates the district's potential, ranking 123rd statewide with a 9.3% chronic absenteeism rate. These comparisons show that high poverty does not have to determine low outcomes. Salisbury's path forward will likely require aggressive work on attendance, math instruction, and targeted support for student groups where the school currently ranks in the bottom 5–10% of the state.

930

Students ?

19.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,029

Per pupil spending ?

Community Eligibility

All students receive free meals (2024-25) ?

500 Lincolnton Rd
Salisbury, NC 28144-6148

(704) 636-1221

District: Rowan-Salisbury Schools

Racial breakdown:

African American:

43.1%

Hispanic:

34.4%

White:

14.9%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Salisbury High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2016 → 10th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (30% vs 60% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!Graduation rate below the North Carolina average (80% vs 89%)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school30%

District avg42%

North Carolina avg60%

599^th of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Bottom 10%▼ down 14 pts since 2016

From bottom 24% (2016) to bottom 10% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 7High Schools in the Rowan-Salisbury Schools

199^th of 246Rowan-Salisbury 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	10.9	599 of 662	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	11.9	586 of 641	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.8	587 of 640	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.5	576 of 626	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.8	519 of 621	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.8	493 of 594	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.4	451 of 514	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	16.6	388 of 469	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	13.6	403 of 476	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	19.7	386 of 507	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	18.9	405 of 531	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	22.6	332 of 451	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	16.3	407 of 505	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	43.8	284 of 502	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2011	53.3	258 of 506	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	66.6	111 of 499	77.8%	★★★★☆
2009	71.6	58 of 490	88.2%	★★★★☆
2008	63.2	123 of 477	74.2%	★★★★☆
2007	61.1	130 of 453	71.3%	★★★★☆
2006	65.6	110 of 431	74.5%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	12.8	420 of 450	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.9	413 of 440	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.1	345 of 437	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.1	414 of 434	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	26.0	336 of 430	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.1	285 of 364	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.4	338 of 369	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.9	327 of 359	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	25.4	257 of 330	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.1	214 of 334	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	20.7	327 of 364	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.9	349 of 349	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	15.8	274 of 289	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.7	266 of 273	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	27.4	170 of 226	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	30.2	90 of 124	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	35.7	111 of 173	35.8%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	10.1	584 of 629	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.9	574 of 610	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.2	587 of 602	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.5	559 of 588	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.2	505 of 594	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.9	394 of 475	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	11.9	434 of 475	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.0	405 of 449	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	31.4	349 of 407	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	374 of 403	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.9	368 of 403	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.0	393 of 398	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	38.3	247 of 337	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	12.0	311 of 325	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	63.9	31 of 100	69.0%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	10.6	450 of 474	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	12.5	448 of 462	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.9	444 of 454	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.5	441 of 449	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.7	368 of 436	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.4	308 of 370	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	5.8	352 of 354	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	5.1	339 of 340	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	11.3	577 of 620	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	13.1	569 of 606	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.3	568 of 613	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.7	561 of 597	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	24.7	432 of 544	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.0	306 of 432	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.4	412 of 446	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.0	387 of 424	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	10.2	578 of 624	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	12.5	557 of 601	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.1	535 of 607	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	11.8	549 of 602	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.6	503 of 585	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.7	389 of 481	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	10.9	449 of 488	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.6	394 of 463	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	22.0	229 of 265	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	31.5	189 of 253	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.6	247 of 261	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.1	219 of 249	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.6	172 of 226	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	31.4	404 of 551	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	29.1	414 of 542	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.8	442 of 553	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	41.5	309 of 537	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	55.5	231 of 534	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	46.9	186 of 439	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.6	193 of 444	56.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	54.9	175 of 427	59.0%	★★★☆☆

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)27th percentile+17 vs school

Disabled (2022)22nd percentile+6 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)14th percentile+5 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)14th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)7th percentile~ school

Female (2026)7th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)7th percentile-3 vs school

African American (2026)7th percentile-3 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)5th percentile-4 vs school

Hispanic (2026)5th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English II42%-23 vs state

Biology36%-22 vs state

Math III25%-44 vs state

Math I18%-24 vs state

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What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, November 18, 2014

The local newspaper loves to tout the virtues of this school's academically gifted program. If your child is white, privileged and super brilliant, he or she will get placed on a floor of the school where they will have virtually no interaction with persons of color during the day, except for maybe in the school cafeteria. Drug dealings and knockout games are not uncommon, and the police lock down campus at least twice a month for reports of guns or gang violence. There is a reason this school is 5th ranked out of the Rowan-Salisbury School System's five high schools, and in the bottom 14% of statewide high schools. I just can't imagine how bad the lower-ranked schools must be! Close Quote

Schools Near Salisbury High

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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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Salisbury High	Public	9-12	500 Lincolnton Rd	Salisbury	28144	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 636-1221	930	47	19.5	—	139 (14.9%)	401 (43.1%)	320 (34.4%)	12 (1.3%)	6 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (5.6%)	10.9	599^th of 662 public high schools	9.5%		11.9	586^th of 641 public high schools	8.6%	13	36.5	41.8	18.4	24.6				$11,029	$745	$10,284
Henderson High	Public	6-12	1215 North Main St	Salisbury	28144	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 639-3134	71	7	10.2	95.8%	15 (21.1%)	38 (53.5%)	7 (9.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (15.5%)	0.9	658^th of 662 public high schools	0.6%					(n/a)	7.1	5.3	536.1		< 5%	6.7	7.7	$25,678	$1,458	$24,220
Rowan County Early College	Public	9-12	1333 Jake Alexander Blvd S	Salisbury	28145	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 216-3873	235	7	32.9	—	93 (39.6%)	31 (13.2%)	91 (38.7%)	10 (4.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (4.3%)	83.1	123^rd of 662 public high schools	81.4%		88	91^st of 641 public high schools	85.8%	32	79.4	85.7	64.9	98.3				$7,268	$298	$6,970
North Rowan High	Public	9-12	300 North Whitehead Ave	Spencer	28159	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 636-4420	555	28	20.0	0.5%	117 (21.1%)	214 (38.6%)	177 (31.9%)	9 (1.6%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (6.3%)	4.7	631^st of 662 public high schools	4.7%		5.9	617^th of 641 public high schools	3.7%	14	21.0	30.4	10.0	23.5				$12,425	$1,166	$11,259
East Rowan High	Public	9-12	175 St Luke's Church Rd	Salisbury	28146	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 279-5232	986	49	20.0	—	703 (71.3%)	121 (12.3%)	97 (9.8%)	4 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	61 (6.2%)	31.7	468^th of 662 public high schools	29.3%		32.3	431^st of 641 public high schools	32.8%	37	49.2	49.8	27.7	66.3				$9,575	$985	$8,590
Carson High	Public	9-12	290 Kress Venture Dr	China Grove	28023	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 855-7297	1,063	46	22.9	—	677 (63.7%)	67 (6.3%)	253 (23.8%)	12 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (5.1%)	53.7	298^th of 662 public high schools	55.0%		44.2	343^rd of 641 public high schools	46.5%	45	91.5	56.7	63.7	65.5				$8,570	$767	$7,803
West Rowan High	Public	9-12	8050 NC 801 Hwy	Mount Ulla	28125	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 278-9233	988	46	21.6	—	497 (50.3%)	180 (18.2%)	221 (22.4%)	11 (1.1%)	4 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	74 (7.5%)	21.3	543^rd of 662 public high schools	18.0%		11.8	588^th of 641 public high schools	8.3%	45	46.4	51.5	25.1	40.2				$9,333	$909	$8,424
South Rowan High	Public	9-12	1655 Patterson St	China Grove	28023	Rowan County	Rowan-Salisbury Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 857-1161	932	43	21.5	—	552 (59.2%)	85 (9.1%)	230 (24.7%)	9 (1.0%)	5 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	50 (5.4%)	19	561^st of 662 public high schools	15.3%		16.2	552^nd of 641 public high schools	13.9%	9	42.5	44.8	19.1	50.0				$9,584	$1,002	$8,582
West Davidson High	Public	9-12	200 Dragon Drive	Lexington	27295	Davidson County	Davidson County Schools	No	No	No	No	(336) 853-8082	740	42	17.6	56.6%	585 (79.1%)	33 (4.5%)	88 (11.9%)	4 (0.5%)	6 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (3.2%)	44.1	375^th of 662 public high schools	43.4%		42.5	356^th of 641 public high schools	44.5%	19	61.3	55.2	28.9	77.0				$8,366	$319	$8,047
A L Brown High	Public	9-12	415 Martin Luther King Jr Ave	Kannapolis	28083	Cabarrus County	Kannapolis City Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 932-6125	1,753	94	18.6	—	422 (24.1%)	497 (28.4%)	702 (40.0%)	10 (0.6%)	4 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	118 (6.7%)	9.2	606^th of 662 public high schools	8.5%		11.4	591^st of 641 public high schools	7.8%	15	26.5	42.0	7.7	36.4				$9,314	$705	$8,609

Frequently Asked Questions about Salisbury High

What district is Salisbury High in?

Rowan-Salisbury Schools

What schools feed into Salisbury High?

Salisbury High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Overton Elementary

How many students attend Salisbury High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 930 students attended Salisbury High.

What is the racial makeup of Salisbury High?

Students at Salisbury High are 43% African American, 34% Hispanic, 15% White, 6% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

Is Salisbury High a good school?

Salisbury High ranks in the bottom 9.5% of North Carolina high schools.

Rate Salisbury High!

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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.