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South Stanly High

Q: Is South Stanly High a good school?

South Stanly High ranks 422 nd of 641 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

422^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 641 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 34% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

South Stanly High is a public high school located in Norwood, North Carolina, serving grades 9-12 with a total enrollment of 434 students. It is part of the Stanly County Schools district, which is ranked 92 out of 242 school districts in North Carolina and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

While South Stanly High has maintained a relatively stable four-year graduation rate, it has consistently underperformed compared to the Stanly County Schools district and the state of North Carolina in end-of-course (EOC) test scores across subjects like Biology, English II, Math I, and Math III. The school's performance on EOC tests has been declining over the years, with its ranking among North Carolina high schools dropping from 207 in 2017-2018 to 422 in 2024-2025. Additionally, the school has seen varying performance among different student subgroups, with Hispanic and Disabled students performing better than other subgroups.

Interestingly, the nearby high schools, such as North Stanly High, West Stanly High, and Albemarle High, generally outperform South Stanly High in academic metrics, including EOC test scores and graduation rates. The Stanly STEM Early College and Stanly Early College High, which are also part of the Stanly County Schools district, have consistently outperformed South Stanly High and other nearby schools in academic measures, despite serving a significant proportion of low-income students.

442

Students ?

16.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,199

Per pupil spending ?

99.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

40488 S Stanly School Rd
Norwood, NC 28128

(704) 961-4100

District: Stanly County Schools

Feeder schools for South Stanly High:

Elementary:	Aquadale Elementary
	Norwood Elementary
Middle:	South Stanly Middle

Racial breakdown:

White:

69.2%

African American:

13.3%

Hispanic:

7.9%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare South Stanly High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 56th percentile in 2015 → 34th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (44% vs 53% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 22 percentile points since 2015

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school44%

District avg52%

North Carolina avg53%

422^nd of 641

North Carolina public high schools ?

Bottom 34%▼ down 22 pts since 2015

From top 44% (2015) to bottom 34% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 5High Schools in the Stanly County Schools

92^nd of 242Stanly 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
2025	33.5	422 of 641	34.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	22.0	501 of 640	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.6	441 of 626	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	34.2	404 of 621	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	35.7	364 of 594	38.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.7	315 of 514	38.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	51.6	207 of 469	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2017	40.6	243 of 476	48.9%	★★☆☆☆
2016	39.1	238 of 507	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2015	44.0	233 of 531	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2014	34.2	246 of 451	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	41.9	219 of 505	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2012	63.6	114 of 502	77.3%	★★★★☆
2011	61.2	165 of 506	67.4%	★★★☆☆
2010	65.0	133 of 499	73.3%	★★★★☆
2009	62.6	139 of 490	71.6%	★★★★☆
2008	71.9	56 of 477	88.3%	★★★★☆
2007	73.1	55 of 453	87.9%	★★★★☆
2006	69.0	80 of 431	81.4%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	21.7	372 of 440	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	21.6	379 of 437	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.7	291 of 434	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.3	290 of 430	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	25.0	279 of 364	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.0	315 of 369	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.1	193 of 359	46.2%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	29.8	223 of 330	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	70.4	51 of 334	84.7%	★★★★☆
2019	41.5	198 of 364	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	70.7	59 of 349	83.1%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	38.6	378 of 610	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	23.6	466 of 602	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.8	485 of 588	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.4	436 of 594	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.0	327 of 475	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	43.3	244 of 475	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	53.1	208 of 449	53.7%	★★★☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2024	31.5	339 of 403	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	1.5	398 of 403	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.7	372 of 398	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	38.6	245 of 337	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	67.9	83 of 325	74.5%	★★★★☆
2018	59.1	40 of 100	60.0%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	47.3	197 of 436	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.2	119 of 354	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	58.4	94 of 340	72.4%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	39.3	332 of 606	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	22.9	485 of 613	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.1	411 of 597	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.9	335 of 544	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	24.8	317 of 432	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	34.1	262 of 446	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	58.4	100 of 424	76.4%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	28.2	447 of 601	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.9	496 of 607	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	33.8	390 of 602	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.0	346 of 585	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	43.8	211 of 481	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	24.4	367 of 488	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	48.8	216 of 463	53.3%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	18.2	326 of 352	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	27.7	268 of 349	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	25.5	439 of 542	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.8	499 of 553	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.6	471 of 537	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.2	421 of 534	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.1	303 of 439	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	24.6	347 of 444	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	43.4	235 of 427	45.0%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Hispanic (2022)55th percentile+20 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)45th percentile+11 vs school

Female (2025)38th percentile+4 vs school

Disabled (2022)32nd percentile-3 vs school

Male (2025)26th percentile-9 vs school

White (2025)19th percentile-15 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2024)16th percentile-6 vs school

African American (2025)15th percentile-19 vs school

Special Education (2025)7th percentile-27 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Math III62%-4 vs state

English II47%-13 vs state

Biology41%-7 vs state

Math I25%-10 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Saturday, September 7, 2019

Great small town school. Dedicated staff and state winning softball and baseball programs. Close Quote

Schools Near South Stanly High

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
South Stanly High	Public	9-12	40488 S Stanly School Rd	Norwood	28128	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-4100	442	27	16.2	99.3%	306 (69.2%)	59 (13.3%)	35 (7.9%)	14 (3.2%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (5.7%)	33.5	422^nd of 641 public high schools	34.2%		22	501^st of 640 public high schools	21.7%	79	41.2	47.0	24.7	61.9	$9,199	$565	$8,634
Stanly Early College High	Public	9-12	141 College Drive	Albemarle	28001	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-4400	188	8	23.4	98.4%	143 (76.1%)	7 (3.7%)	25 (13.3%)	8 (4.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.7%)	94.7	29^th of 641 public high schools	95.5%		91.7	60^th of 640 public high schools	90.6%	31	89.1	97.7	85.2	97.2	$7,609	$364	$7,245
Stanly Academy Learning Center	Public	8-12	1121 Austin St	Albemarle	28001	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 961-4500	13	1	14.4	76.9%	6 (46.2%)	6 (46.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (7.7%)								(n/a)					$23,336	$986	$22,350
Albemarle High	Public	9-12	311 Park Ridge Road	Albemarle	28001	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-4200	414	30	13.5	99.0%	86 (20.8%)	218 (52.7%)	65 (15.7%)	6 (1.4%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (8.7%)	14	571^st of 641 public high schools	10.9%		13.8	561^st of 640 public high schools	12.3%	10	12.2	36.2	14.8	51.9	$10,302	$1,146	$9,156
Stanly STEM Early College	Public	9-12	311 Park Ridge Road	Albemarle	28001	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-4900	189	6	31.5	98.4%	87 (46.0%)	24 (12.7%)	35 (18.5%)	29 (15.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (7.4%)	90.3	75^th of 641 public high schools	88.3%		91.3	62^nd of 640 public high schools	90.3%	13		95.3	61.5	100.0
West Stanly High	Public	9-12	306 East Red Cross Road	Oakboro	28129	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-5200	800	45	17.8	99.6%	580 (72.5%)	49 (6.1%)	113 (14.1%)	10 (1.3%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	44 (5.5%)	68.3	184^th of 641 public high schools	71.3%		46	323^rd of 640 public high schools	49.5%	139	71.9	69.0	53.2	75.3	$8,527	$469	$8,058
North Stanly High	Public	9-12	40206 US Hwy 52 N	New London	28127	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-4600	568	37	15.4	98.2%	412 (72.5%)	67 (11.8%)	38 (6.7%)	16 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	34 (6.0%)	29.7	455^th of 641 public high schools	29.0%		19.5	521^st of 640 public high schools	18.6%	66	52.1	46.1	9.1	54.9	$8,783	$580	$8,203
Anson County Early College High	Public	9-12	177 Ledbetter Street	Polkton	28135	Anson County	Anson County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 272-5396	210	10	21.4	98.6%	89 (42.4%)	78 (37.1%)	19 (9.0%)	14 (6.7%)	3 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.3%)	76.4	150^th of 641 public high schools	76.6%		69.3	185^th of 640 public high schools	71.1%	35	62.5	78.0	52.2	88.6	$8,091	$205	$7,886
Montgomery Learning Academy	Public	6-12	310 S Main	Troy	27371	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Schools	No	No	No	No	(910) 572-1161	54	7	7.7	94.4%	19 (35.2%)	13 (24.1%)	19 (35.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (5.6%)	4.2	624^th of 641 public high schools	2.7%		1.7	636^th of 640 public high schools	0.6%	12	15.8	5.6			$21,924	$12	$21,912
Anson High School	Public	9-12	96 Anson High School Road	Wadesboro	28170	Anson County	Anson County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 694-9301	705	30	23.1	99.6%	173 (24.5%)	417 (59.1%)	70 (9.9%)	6 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	36 (5.1%)	24.1	500^th of 641 public high schools	22.0%		15.6	548^th of 640 public high schools	14.4%	48	51.4	38.5	14.2	58.8	$12,828	$1,641	$11,187

Frequently Asked Questions about South Stanly High

What is the racial makeup of South Stanly High?

Students at South Stanly High are 69% White, 13% African American, 8% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

Is South Stanly High a good school?

South Stanly High ranks 422^nd of 641 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is South Stanly High in?

Stanly County Schools

How many students attend South Stanly High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 442 students attended South Stanly High.

What schools feed into South Stanly High?

South Stanly High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Aquadale Elementary
Elementary : Norwood Elementary
Middle : South Stanly Middle

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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.