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South Stanly Middle

Q: Is South Stanly Middle a good school?

South Stanly Middle ranks 450 th of 773 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

450^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 773 North Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 42% of North Carolina middle schools

Summary

South Stanly Middle is a public middle school in Norwood, North Carolina, serving 362 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the Stanly County Schools district, which is ranked 92 out of 242 districts in the state.

Academically, South Stanly Middle has consistently ranked in the bottom half of North Carolina middle schools over the past five years, with performance on state assessments generally below the district and state averages, particularly in mathematics. The school's proficiency rates are 10-20 percentage points lower than the nearby West Stanly Middle and North Stanly Middle schools, which significantly outperform South Stanly Middle. Additionally, the school's performance for subgroups like African American, Hispanic, and Special Education students is significantly lower than the overall school performance.

South Stanly Middle has a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students, with 62.98% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, compared to the nearby middle schools. The school's per-student spending is higher than the nearby schools, but its overall ranking and rating have declined in recent years, in contrast to the relatively stable or improving performance of the nearby middle schools. To address these challenges, the school and district may need to focus on targeted interventions, resource allocation, and strategies to support the unique needs of their student population.

402

Students ?

16.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,546

Per pupil spending ?

99.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

12492 Cottonville Road
Norwood, NC 28128

(704) 961-5700

District: Stanly County Schools

Students who attend South Stanly Middle usually attend:

High:

South Stanly High

Feeder schools for South Stanly Middle:

Elementary:	Aquadale Elementary
	Norwood Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

64.7%

African American:

15.2%

Hispanic:

10.4%

See top rated North Carolina middle schools

Compare South Stanly Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 24th percentile in 2018 → 42nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 42nd (2025) from a 24th-percentile low (2018)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the North Carolina average (49% vs 54% meeting standards)

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

!Science scores 10 pts below the North Carolina average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school49%

District avg53%

North Carolina avg54%

450^th of 773

North Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 42%▼ down 9 pts since 2015

From top 49% (2015) to bottom 42% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 4Middle 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	42.9	450 of 773	41.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.6	453 of 793	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.3	489 of 784	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.3	546 of 786	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.8	510 of 741	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	52.8	357 of 737	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	25.7	526 of 691	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	45.2	407 of 694	41.4%	★★☆☆☆
2016	48.7	368 of 692	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2015	52.1	348 of 705	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2014	63.8	198 of 627	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2013	57.8	259 of 673	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2012	70.5	191 of 662	71.1%	★★★★☆
2011	71.0	187 of 648	71.1%	★★★★☆
2010	75.4	138 of 640	78.4%	★★★★☆
2009	75.8	132 of 630	79.0%	★★★★☆
2008	73.1	149 of 620	76.0%	★★★★☆
2007	75.2	109 of 606	82.0%	★★★★☆
2006	73.0	131 of 598	78.1%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	26.5	433 of 546	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.0	507 of 560	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	16.8	516 of 559	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.1	500 of 550	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	23.1	450 of 533	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	44.6	280 of 519	46.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	14.1	464 of 494	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	31.2	310 of 449	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	45.4	224 of 478	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	52.8	185 of 504	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	23.0	424 of 475	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	44.7	415 of 733	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	49.4	366 of 738	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	37.6	452 of 731	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.3	455 of 733	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.1	506 of 706	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	45.7	395 of 684	42.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	20.4	554 of 656	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	55.9	256 of 458	44.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	59.9	212 of 461	54.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	58.5	229 of 452	49.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	59.5	205 of 450	54.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	42.5	327 of 448	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	57.5	216 of 416	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	58.3	56 of 127	55.9%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	28.0	438 of 562	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	34.0	398 of 564	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.6	513 of 541	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.1	515 of 522	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	54.1	193 of 493	60.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	8.8	460 of 472	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	38.6	454 of 729	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.3	467 of 743	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.5	498 of 735	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.6	467 of 689	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	33.7	428 of 633	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	55.2	256 of 639	59.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	22.6	509 of 604	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	40.2	439 of 733	40.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.5	491 of 751	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.1	484 of 747	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	26.6	563 of 748	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	32.1	488 of 711	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	56.0	305 of 697	56.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	29.5	493 of 665	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	23.5	434 of 478	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	34.7	449 of 649	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.5	421 of 652	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	22.9	543 of 656	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.2	560 of 658	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.6	557 of 632	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.0	437 of 624	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	11.6	561 of 596	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Gifted and Talented (2025)44th percentile~ school

Female (2025)43rd percentile~ school

Male (2025)40th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)38th percentile-4 vs school

Disabled (2022)31st percentile~ school

White (2025)31st percentile-11 vs school

Hispanic (2025)22nd percentile-20 vs school

African American (2025)21st percentile-21 vs school

Special Education (2025)9th percentile-33 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Reading52%~ state avg

Science50%-10 vs state

Mathematics45%-8 vs state

★

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Schools Near South Stanly Middle

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				EOG Mathematics (2025)					EOG Reading (2025)					EOG Science (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	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
South Stanly Middle	Public	6-8	12492 Cottonville Road	Norwood	28128	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-5700	402	24	16.9	99.3%	260 (64.7%)	61 (15.2%)	42 (10.4%)	17 (4.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.2%)	42.9	450^th of 773 public middle schools	41.8%		43.6	453^rd of 793 public middle schools	42.9%	3			59.0	40.3	39.5			52.1	46.0	57.8		49.7	$9,546	$628	$8,918
Albemarle Middle	Public	6-8	1811 Badin Road	Albemarle	28001	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 961-3400	355	25	14.3	99.2%	93 (26.2%)	156 (43.9%)	60 (16.9%)	14 (3.9%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	30 (8.5%)	10.7	715^th of 773 public middle schools	7.5%		10.8	729^th of 793 public middle schools	8.1%	14			17.9	33.1	11.5			34.7	32.2	31.3		35.4	$10,875	$1,299	$9,576
North Stanly Middle	Public	6-8	36605 Old Salisbury Rd	New London	28127	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-3700	471	28	16.6	99.4%	353 (74.9%)	47 (10.0%)	17 (3.6%)	16 (3.4%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (7.6%)	55.3	323^rd of 773 public middle schools	58.2%		35.1	530^th of 793 public middle schools	33.2%	207			49.7	56.7	54.2			50.6	50.4	61.1		66.4	$8,519	$666	$7,853
West Stanly Middle School	Public	6-8	339 Running Creek Church Rd	Locust	28097	Stanly County	Stanly County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 961-3600	662	38	17.3	99.5%	472 (71.3%)	35 (5.3%)	101 (15.3%)	14 (2.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (5.9%)	74.5	168^th of 773 public middle schools	78.3%		71	199^th of 793 public middle schools	74.9%	31			70.4	64.7	61.7			60.2	62.7	70.9		64.3	$8,483	$608	$7,875
West Middle	Public	6-8	129 NC Hwy 109S	Mount Gilead	27306	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Schools	No	No	No	No	(910) 572-9378	343	20	17.1	99.1%	159 (46.4%)	94 (27.4%)	54 (15.7%)	7 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	28 (8.2%)	37.4	490^th of 773 public middle schools	36.6%		33.9	540^th of 793 public middle schools	31.9%	50			51.3	38.7	44.1			41.2	34.0	52.3		62.2	$10,822	$825	$9,997
Anson Middle	Public	7-8	832 US Hwy 52 N	Wadesboro	28170	Anson County	Anson County Schools	No	No	No	No	(704) 694-3945	414	28	14.9	99.3%	103 (24.9%)	236 (57.0%)	43 (10.4%)	7 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (6.0%)	13.8	693^rd of 773 public middle schools	10.3%		9.5	738^th of 793 public middle schools	6.9%	45				32.0	27.1				36.7	29.6		30.8	$9,167	$956	$8,210
Wadesboro Elementary	Public	4-6	321 Camden Road	Wadesboro	28170	Anson County	Anson County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(704) 694-9383	215	14	15.3	97.2%	29 (13.5%)	156 (72.6%)	17 (7.9%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (5.6%)								(n/a)	25.0	18.8	43.7			33.8	30.0	38.9			23.8		$11,235	$2,965	$8,270

Frequently Asked Questions about South Stanly Middle

What is the racial makeup of South Stanly Middle?

Students at South Stanly Middle are 65% White, 15% African American, 10% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

Is South Stanly Middle a good school?

South Stanly Middle ranks 450^th of 773 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What high school do graduates of South Stanly Middle attend?

Students who attend South Stanly Middle usually go on to attend South Stanly High

What district is South Stanly Middle in?

Stanly County Schools

How many students attend South Stanly Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 402 students attended South Stanly Middle.

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Schools in Norwood, 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.