Washington County High

Washington County High in Plymouth, North Carolina, is a combined middle and high school serving 450 students in grades 6–12 in a small, rural town in the northeastern part of the state. It belongs to Washington County Schools, a district ranked 198th out of 246 in North Carolina. WCH has spent a decade in the bottom tier of the state’s high school rankings, landing at the 7th percentile in 2025–2026. That record is not explained by poverty alone: 99% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, yet nearby John A Holmes High serves an almost identical population with far better results. WCH also spends more per student — about $16,900 — than many higher-performing nearby schools, so resources and class size are not the limiting factor.

Proficiency trails state averages in nearly every subject. In 2025–2026, only 15.7% of WCH students were proficient in Biology, versus 58.5% statewide, while Washington Early College High — a district school with similar poverty just 19 miles away — posted 73.3% proficiency. English II improved to 40.6% (state: 64.6%), and Math III sits at 32.4% (state: 68.9%). WCH’s graduation rate currently sits at 79.7%, well below the state’s 88.8% and below the recent rates at John A Holmes High (91.9%) and Martin County High (92.5%).

Perhaps the clearest differentiator is attendance. Chronic absenteeism at WCH is 44.5% — nearly double the state rate and far above Washington Early College High’s 5.5%. When nearly half of students are chronically absent, academic recovery becomes very difficult. There is some encouraging news: English II proficiency has climbed from 10.5% to 40.6% in two years, and chronic absenteeism is down sharply from its 74.6% peak. Even so, attendance ticked back up in the latest year, Biology proficiency remains in the mid-teens, and the graduation rate slid to 79.7% — a reminder that progress at WCH is real but still fragile.