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Heritage High

Q: Is Heritage High a good school?

Heritage High ranks 256 th of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

256^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 662 North Carolina High Schools

Better than 61% of North Carolina high schools

Summary

Heritage High is a large traditional public high school in Wake Forest, NC, serving just under 1,800 students in grades 9-12 as part of Wake County Schools. The school currently ranks 256th out of 662 North Carolina high schools (61st percentile, 3 stars), placing it solidly in the upper-middle tier statewide. That is a step back from its mid-2010s peak, when Heritage was a consistent 4-star school that ranked as high as 61st in the state. The graduation rate remains a clear strength at 90.8%, above the state average, and chronic absenteeism of 18.6% is well below both district and state levels.

Upper-level test results are where Heritage shines brightest among its immediate neighbors. English II proficiency is 75.7%, matching the district average and well above the state, while Math III proficiency of 78.7% is the highest among nearby comprehensive high schools — ahead of Wake Forest High School (77.1%), Wakefield High, and Millbrook High. The clearest academic concern is Math I proficiency, which has fallen from 47.8% to 35.8% over the past three years — below the state average, though still slightly ahead of every other nearby Wake County traditional high school. Heritage also trails Wake Forest High School in Biology and both Wake Forest High and Wakefield on graduation rate, making the lead over its cluster narrow.

Attendance and student engagement are Heritage's strongest differentiators, supporting a solid foundation that test scores alone don't fully capture. The school also posts notably strong outcomes for special education and multiracial students relative to statewide averages. The bigger opportunities lie in supporting Hispanic students, students from low-income backgrounds, and English learners, whose outcomes have been inconsistent and below the school's overall standing. Given its below-average poverty rate compared with neighboring schools, that gap points to targeted academic support rather than demographics. If Heritage can strengthen early math support and narrow those subgroup differences, it has a realistic path back to consistent 4-star status.

1,778

Students ?

18.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$8,792

Per pupil spending ?

27.7%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

1150 Forestville Road
Wake Forest, NC 27587

(919) 570-5600

District: Wake County Schools

Feeder schools for Heritage High:

Elementary:

Heritage Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

53.4%

Hispanic:

23.5%

African American:

14.5%

See top rated North Carolina high schools

Compare Heritage High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 80th percentile in 2016 → 61st in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the North Carolina average (67% vs 60% meeting standards)

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Wake County Schools

✓Above the North Carolina median (61st percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 19 percentile points since 2016

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school67%

District avg68%

North Carolina avg60%

256^th of 662

North Carolina public high schools ?

Top 39%▼ down 19 pts since 2016

From top 20% (2016) to top 39% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^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	59.8	256 of 662	61.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	66.0	198 of 641	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.9	241 of 640	62.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	64.8	194 of 626	69.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	62.8	214 of 621	65.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	61.3	197 of 594	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.8	113 of 514	78.0%	★★★★☆
2018	78.8	61 of 469	87.0%	★★★★☆
2017	71.8	73 of 476	84.7%	★★★★☆
2016	61.6	100 of 507	80.3%	★★★★☆
2015	62.9	107 of 531	79.8%	★★★★☆
2014	62.7	105 of 451	76.7%	★★★★☆
2013	56.8	95 of 505	81.2%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	60.0	137 of 450	69.6%	★★★☆☆
2025	65.4	107 of 440	75.7%	★★★★☆
2024	51.2	156 of 437	64.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.1	124 of 434	71.4%	★★★★☆
2022	67.3	97 of 430	77.4%	★★★★☆
2021	60.9	72 of 364	80.2%	★★★★☆
2019	67.7	51 of 369	86.2%	★★★★☆
2018	69.2	60 of 359	83.3%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	52.1	54 of 103	47.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	71.8	39 of 106	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	46.0	63 of 101	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	49.0	58 of 98	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	57.3	48 of 91	47.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.1	62 of 83	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	43.5	55 of 89	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	58.6	37 of 77	51.9%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	59.5	80 of 330	75.8%	★★★★☆
2021	82.5	27 of 334	91.9%	★★★★★
2019	81.3	27 of 364	92.6%	★★★★★
2018	86.7	25 of 349	92.8%	★★★★★

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	45.2	140 of 289	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2025	32.3	188 of 273	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	51.4	87 of 262	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	65.6	42 of 226	81.4%	★★★★☆
2022	46.6	58 of 156	62.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	46.7	50 of 124	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	92.2	6 of 173	96.5%	★★★★★
2018	54.6	47 of 147	68.0%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	63.0	221 of 629	64.9%	★★★☆☆
2025	66.2	191 of 610	68.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	63.5	204 of 602	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	64.9	195 of 588	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	66.5	182 of 594	69.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	64.5	109 of 475	77.1%	★★★★☆
2019	64.5	120 of 475	74.7%	★★★★☆
2018	77.4	68 of 449	84.9%	★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	64.8	165 of 407	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	62.3	190 of 412	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	60.8	191 of 403	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	68.8	131 of 403	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	67.2	138 of 398	65.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	63.7	128 of 337	62.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.9	112 of 325	65.5%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	36.0	310 of 474	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	34.5	295 of 462	36.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.3	300 of 454	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	47.9	199 of 449	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	41.1	228 of 436	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.4	173 of 370	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.3	118 of 354	66.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	56.2	107 of 340	68.5%	★★★☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2023	51.1	20 of 45	55.6%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	38.6	367 of 620	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.1	380 of 606	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	28.8	436 of 613	28.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	39.1	324 of 597	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	52.3	206 of 544	62.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	47.0	138 of 432	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	51.1	132 of 446	70.4%	★★★★☆
2018	53.0	138 of 424	67.5%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	53.9	273 of 624	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	64.0	194 of 601	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	52.7	269 of 607	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	63.4	198 of 602	67.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	57.5	218 of 585	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	56.5	140 of 481	70.9%	★★★★☆
2019	65.3	107 of 488	78.1%	★★★★☆
2018	79.2	63 of 463	86.4%	★★★★☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	67.0	66 of 265	75.1%	★★★★☆
2025	89.0	18 of 253	92.9%	★★★★★
2024	81.7	36 of 261	86.2%	★★★★☆
2023	73.9	52 of 249	79.1%	★★★★☆
2022	71.5	45 of 226	80.1%	★★★★☆
2021	59.3	71 of 199	64.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	68.6	48 of 195	75.4%	★★★★☆
2018	87.3	12 of 185	93.5%	★★★★★

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	60.1	86 of 372	76.9%	★★★★☆
2025	54.0	105 of 352	70.2%	★★★★☆
2024	71.6	48 of 349	86.2%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	66.4	193 of 551	65.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	75.1	145 of 542	73.2%	★★★★☆
2024	65.7	198 of 553	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	69.4	166 of 537	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.2	193 of 534	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	62.6	123 of 439	72.0%	★★★★☆
2019	69.2	87 of 444	80.4%	★★★★☆
2018	82.7	48 of 427	88.8%	★★★★☆

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)

Special Education (2026)77th percentile+16 vs school

Disabled (2022)76th percentile+10 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)75th percentile+14 vs school

African American (2026)70th percentile+8 vs school

White (2026)65th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2026)65th percentile+4 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)59th percentile~ school

Male (2026)56th percentile-5 vs school

Homeless (2023)56th percentile-13 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)52nd percentile-10 vs school

Asian (2026)48th percentile-14 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)41st percentile-21 vs school

Hispanic (2026)35th percentile-27 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Math III79%+10 vs state

English II76%+11 vs state

Biology65%+6 vs state

Math I36%-6 vs state

★

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Schools Near Heritage 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)	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	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Heritage High	Public	9-12	1150 Forestville Road	Wake Forest	27587	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 570-5600	1,778	97	18.2	27.7%	950 (53.4%)	257 (14.5%)	418 (23.5%)	86 (4.8%)	3 (0.2%)	2 (0.1%)	62 (3.5%)	59.8	256^th of 662 public high schools	61.3%		66	198^th of 641 public high schools	69.1%	58	64.6	75.7	35.8	78.7	$8,792	$487	$8,305
Wake Forest High School	Public	9-12	420 West Stadium Drive	Wake Forest	27587	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 554-8611	2,043	109	18.8	30.4%	1,052 (51.5%)	473 (23.2%)	360 (17.6%)	71 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.2%)	82 (4.0%)	59	262^nd of 662 public high schools	60.4%		63.8	207^th of 641 public high schools	67.7%	55	70.0	72.5	33.8	77.1	$8,011	$375	$7,637
North Wake College and Career Academy	Public	9-12	931 Durham Rd	Wake Forest	27587	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 694-8650	346	19	17.9	36.1%	122 (35.3%)	117 (33.8%)	75 (21.7%)	15 (4.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (4.6%)	84.5	110^th of 662 public high schools	83.4%		86.6	100^th of 641 public high schools	84.4%	10	84.1	82.4	76.7	94.1	$13,377	$439	$12,939
Wakefield High	Public	9-12	2200 Wakefield Pines Drive	Raleigh	27614	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 562-3600	2,065	106	19.5	36.1%	913 (44.2%)	577 (27.9%)	399 (19.3%)	93 (4.5%)	6 (0.3%)	6 (0.3%)	71 (3.4%)	55.1	286^th of 662 public high schools	56.8%		59.4	231^st of 641 public high schools	64.0%	55	65.1	74.0	30.7	73.8	$8,642	$337	$8,306
Rolesville High	Public	9-12	1099 East Young St	Rolesville	27571	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 554-6303	2,321	126	18.4	50.6%	594 (25.6%)	859 (37.0%)	663 (28.6%)	107 (4.6%)	8 (0.3%)	4 (0.2%)	86 (3.7%)	23.8	529^th of 662 public high schools	20.1%		30.1	447^th of 641 public high schools	30.3%	82	39.3	58.7	19.6	50.9	$8,260	$382	$7,877
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
Knightdale High	Public	9-12	100 Bryan Chalk Lane	Knightdale	27545	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 217-5350	1,695	105	16.1	66.9%	173 (10.2%)	763 (45.0%)	649 (38.3%)	54 (3.2%)	2 (0.1%)	2 (0.1%)	52 (3.1%)	23.8	531^st of 662 public high schools	19.8%		18.1	536^th of 641 public high schools	16.4%	5	40.9	54.7	27.9	50.4	$9,100	$534	$8,566
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
Franklinton High	Public	9-12	910 Cedar Creek Road	Franklinton	27525	Franklin County	Franklin County Schools	No	No	No	No	(919) 494-2332	1,127	63	18.0	—	416 (36.9%)	383 (34.0%)	250 (22.2%)	10 (0.9%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	66 (5.9%)	43.3	381^st of 662 public high schools	42.4%		47.6	322^nd of 641 public high schools	49.8%	59	48.7	66.4	56.5	57.0	$8,675	$527	$8,148
East Wake High	Public	9-12	5101 Rolesville Rd	Wendell	27591	Wake County	Wake County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 365-2625	1,777	99	17.9	63.5%	289 (16.3%)	762 (42.9%)	624 (35.1%)	25 (1.4%)	2 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	75 (4.2%)	18.9	562^nd of 662 public high schools	15.1%		29.6	458^th of 641 public high schools	28.5%	104	39.3	50.3	21.1	46.4	$11,170	$530	$10,640

Frequently Asked Questions about Heritage High

What is the racial makeup of Heritage High?

Students at Heritage High are 53% White, 24% Hispanic, 14% African American, 5% Asian, 3% Two or more races.

What schools feed into Heritage High?

Heritage High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Heritage Elementary

How many students attend Heritage High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,778 students attended Heritage High.

What district is Heritage High in?

Wake County Schools

Is Heritage High a good school?

Heritage High ranks 256^th of 662 North Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Heritage 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.