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Sanderson High

Q: Is Sanderson High a good school?

Sanderson High ranks 383 rd of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

383^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 42% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Sanderson High is a large traditional public high school in Raleigh, North Carolina, serving 1,648 students in grades 9–12 as part of Wake County Schools, one of the state's higher-ranked districts. The school's own state ranking, however, is more middling: 383rd out of 662 North Carolina high schools for 2025–2026, placing it at the 42nd percentile with 2 stars. That puts it below the statewide median and below every comparable traditional high school in its immediate area, including Leesville Road High, Enloe High, Needham Broughton High, and Millbrook High. Sanderson also serves a more economically diverse student population than most of those neighbors, with 43.45% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.

Sanderson's End-of-Course proficiency rates trail Wake County and state averages in Biology, Math I, and Math III, and trail the district in English II as well. For example, 54.5% of Sanderson students scored proficient in Biology, compared to 69.1% across Wake County and 80.4% at nearby Leesville Road High. English II proficiency was 68.2%, versus 78.2% at Leesville and 84.7% at Enloe. On the positive side, Sanderson improved in every EOC subject between 2024–2025 and 2025–2026, its graduation rate has climbed to 88.0%, and its 26.1% chronic absenteeism rate is actually better than Millbrook High's 30.8%.

Performance is uneven across student groups. Sanderson serves White students and special education students near or above the statewide median for those groups, while results for low-income students, English learners, and several other subgroups have historically ranked in the bottom quarter statewide — though those rankings improved sharply just this past year. Spending and staffing are similar to higher-performing neighbors, so the differences more likely come down to academic culture, course-taking patterns, and targeted supports. For parents weighing options, Millbrook High is the most useful comparison: Sanderson actually has better attendance, yet Millbrook posts stronger test results and a 90.7% graduation rate. Sanderson is a mid-range school on an improving trajectory inside a well-regarded district, but it has meaningful work ahead to close the distance to its neighbors.

1,648

Students ?

18.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$8,965

Per pupil spending ?

43.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

5500 Dixon Drive
Raleigh, NC 27609-4202

(919) 881-4800

District: Wake County Schools

Feeder schools for Sanderson High:

Elementary:	Brooks Elementary
	Douglas Elementary
	Lead Mine Elementary
	Lynn Road Elementary
Middle:	Carroll Middle

Racial breakdown:

White:

47.3%

African American:

23.3%

Hispanic:

21.2%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Sanderson High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 67th percentile in 2016 → 42nd in 2026

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 25 percentile points since 2016

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

!Math I scores 12 pts below the North Carolina average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school57%

District avg68%

North Carolina avg60%

383^rd of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Bottom 42%▼ down 25 pts since 2016

From top 33% (2016) to bottom 42% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 20High Schools in the Wake County Schools

60^th of 246Wake 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	43.1	383 of 662	42.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.3	411 of 641	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.1	357 of 640	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.8	337 of 626	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.9	316 of 621	49.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	44.4	308 of 594	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.6	235 of 514	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	48.7	223 of 469	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2017	45.9	212 of 476	55.5%	★★★☆☆
2016	49.1	167 of 507	67.1%	★★★☆☆
2015	54.5	140 of 531	73.6%	★★★★☆
2014	52.0	144 of 451	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2013	56.4	101 of 505	80.0%	★★★★☆
2012	52.7	205 of 502	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2011	69.6	86 of 506	83.0%	★★★★☆
2010	68.5	92 of 499	81.6%	★★★★☆
2009	76.4	38 of 490	92.2%	★★★★★
2008	72.8	53 of 477	88.9%	★★★★☆
2007	74.2	42 of 453	90.7%	★★★★★
2006	68.9	81 of 431	81.2%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	23.7	366 of 450	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	17.6	394 of 440	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.5	333 of 437	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.6	367 of 434	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	36.3	241 of 430	44.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	33.8	203 of 364	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	33.9	223 of 369	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	26.7	275 of 359	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	11.3	93 of 103	9.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	2.1	106 of 106	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.9	94 of 101	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	41.9	67 of 98	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	43.8	61 of 91	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	10.3	72 of 83	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	5.5	86 of 89	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	19.4	66 of 77	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	46.0	133 of 330	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	78.5	34 of 334	89.8%	★★★★★
2019	63.2	75 of 364	79.4%	★★★★☆
2018	51.7	118 of 349	66.2%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	30.5	212 of 289	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.8	271 of 273	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	19.2	254 of 262	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	25.3	190 of 226	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.6	123 of 156	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	34.6	114 of 173	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	22.1	124 of 147	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	39.6	393 of 629	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.6	447 of 610	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.8	412 of 602	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	42.2	335 of 588	43.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.2	317 of 594	46.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.8	243 of 475	48.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.1	229 of 475	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	51.0	218 of 449	51.4%	★★★☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	59.4	210 of 407	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	39.0	303 of 412	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	60.2	198 of 403	50.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	67.4	137 of 403	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.0	260 of 398	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	59.0	159 of 337	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.4	117 of 325	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	80.1	3 of 100	97.0%	★★★★★

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	26.5	373 of 474	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.0	436 of 462	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	389 of 454	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	382 of 449	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.9	359 of 436	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.0	280 of 370	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.1	276 of 354	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.0	304 of 340	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	27.2	38 of 47	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.1	38 of 39	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	30.2	36 of 47	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	23.9	507 of 620	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	16.2	553 of 606	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	24.6	468 of 613	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.1	498 of 597	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.0	385 of 544	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.6	302 of 432	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	21.4	361 of 446	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.0	361 of 424	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	43.2	357 of 624	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	38.0	369 of 601	38.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	49.1	296 of 607	51.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	39.6	346 of 602	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.2	299 of 585	48.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	44.7	208 of 481	56.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	43.9	236 of 488	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	44.2	243 of 463	47.5%	★★☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	37.1	177 of 265	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	43.2	154 of 253	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	48.2	134 of 261	48.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	63.8	71 of 249	71.5%	★★★★☆
2022	15.0	214 of 226	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	64.7	61 of 199	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	45.6	105 of 195	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	74.3	42 of 185	77.3%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	48.7	151 of 372	59.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	37.9	202 of 352	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	48.2	132 of 349	62.2%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	65.6	198 of 551	64.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	60.9	213 of 542	60.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	65.0	202 of 553	63.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	64.5	190 of 537	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.0	194 of 534	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.7	156 of 439	64.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.3	108 of 444	75.7%	★★★★☆
2018	76.7	74 of 427	82.7%	★★★★☆

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)64th percentile+22 vs school

Disabled (2022)60th percentile+11 vs school

Special Education (2026)59th percentile+17 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)48th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2026)43rd percentile~ school

Female (2026)38th percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)33rd percentile-9 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)27th percentile-16 vs school

Hispanic (2026)21st percentile-21 vs school

Homeless (2026)19th percentile-23 vs school

African American (2026)19th percentile-23 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)18th percentile-24 vs school

Asian (2026)10th percentile-32 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English II68%+4 vs state

Math III64%-5 vs state

Biology55%-4 vs state

Math I30%-12 vs state

★

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Schools Near Sanderson 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/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	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 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
Sanderson High	Public	9-12	5500 Dixon Drive	Raleigh	27609	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 881-4800	1,648	91	18.0	43.4%	779 (47.3%)	384 (23.3%)	349 (21.2%)	55 (3.3%)	3 (0.2%)	2 (0.1%)	76 (4.6%)	43.1	383^rd of 662 public high schools	42.1%		35.3	411^th of 641 public high schools	35.9%	28	54.5	68.2	29.8	64.3								$8,965	$528	$8,437
Millbrook High	Public, Magnet	9-12	2201 Spring Forest Rd	Raleigh	27615	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(919) 850-8787	2,498	137	18.2	33.3%	1,188 (47.6%)	572 (22.9%)	552 (22.1%)	85 (3.4%)	6 (0.2%)	4 (0.2%)	91 (3.6%)	53.2	301^st of 662 public high schools	54.5%		59.3	232^nd of 641 public high schools	63.8%	69	67.3	75.2	33.2	66.1								$8,648	$382	$8,265
Ncvps	Public, Virtual	7-12	343 E. Six Forks Road Suite 1	Raleigh	27609	Wake County	North Carolina Virtual Public School	No	No	Yes	No	(919) 513-8550	0	0			0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Leesville Road High	Public	9-12	8410 Pride Way	Raleigh	27613	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 870-4250	2,411	123	19.6	24.5%	1,364 (56.6%)	486 (20.2%)	343 (14.2%)	132 (5.5%)	3 (0.1%)	2 (0.1%)	81 (3.4%)	76.6	155^th of 662 public high schools	76.6%		71.1	174^th of 641 public high schools	72.9%	19	80.4	78.2	62.3	86.4								$8,133	$353	$7,780
Raleigh Charter High School	Public, Charter	9-12	1307 Glenwood Avenue	Raleigh	27605	Wake County	Raleigh Charter High School	Yes	No	No	No	(919) 715-1155	552	43	12.8		214 (38.8%)	42 (7.6%)	36 (6.5%)	224 (40.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	34 (6.2%)	90.5	70^th of 662 public high schools	89.4%		93.3	46^th of 641 public high schools	92.8%	24	92.6	95.6	65.4	97.2
Needham Broughton High	Public, Magnet	9-12	723 Saint Marys St	Raleigh	27605	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(919) 856-7810	2,153	118	18.2	28.1%	1,259 (58.5%)	423 (19.6%)	342 (15.9%)	52 (2.4%)	2 (0.1%)	1 (0.0%)	74 (3.4%)	69	193^rd of 662 public high schools	70.8%		68	185^th of 641 public high schools	71.1%	8	74.6	83.6	26.3	84.8								$9,028	$494	$8,535
Phillips High	Public	9-12	1923 Milburnie Rd	Raleigh	27610	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 856-7710	123	27	4.4	95.9%	25 (20.3%)	47 (38.2%)	42 (34.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (7.3%)	13.7	589^th of 662 public high schools	11.0%		6.3	614^th of 641 public high schools	4.2%	25	27.0	48.6	538.8	26.7								$35,266	$881	$34,385
Longview	Public	6-12	318 N King Charles Rd	Raleigh	27610	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 856-7691	18	18	1.0	83.3%	2 (11.1%)	12 (66.7%)	2 (11.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (11.1%)								(n/a)												$56,642	$2,923	$53,719
Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy	Public	6-12	301 Ashe Avenue	Raleigh	27606	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 508-9088	337	21	15.9	34.4%	118 (35.0%)	111 (32.9%)	59 (17.5%)	25 (7.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (7.1%)	90.2	74^th of 662 public high schools	88.8%		86.7	99^th of 641 public high schools	84.6%	25	87.8	92.7		100.0	92.5	87.5	98.0	94.3	89.3	100.0	98.0	$11,659	$232	$11,427
Enloe High	Public, Magnet	9-12	128 Clarendon Crescent	Raleigh	27610	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(919) 856-7918	2,643	149	17.7	28.0%	930 (35.2%)	690 (26.1%)	352 (13.3%)	553 (20.9%)	4 (0.2%)	1 (0.0%)	113 (4.3%)	72	175^th of 662 public high schools	73.6%		74	160^th of 641 public high schools	75.0%	15	78.0	84.7	27.8	81.5								$8,913	$404	$8,510

Frequently Asked Questions about Sanderson High

What schools feed into Sanderson High?

Sanderson High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Brooks Elementary
Elementary : Douglas Elementary
Elementary : Lead Mine Elementary
Elementary : Lynn Road Elementary
Middle : Carroll Middle

Is Sanderson High a good school?

Sanderson High ranks 383^rd of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Sanderson High in?

Wake County Schools

What is the racial makeup of Sanderson High?

Students at Sanderson High are 47% White, 23% African American, 21% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

How many students attend Sanderson High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,648 students attended Sanderson High.

Rate Sanderson 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.