Summary:
Zip code 27545 contains exactly one public high school: Knightdale High, which serves roughly 1,695 students in grades 9–12 in the Knightdale area of North Carolina. The school is part of Wake County Schools, a strong district ranked #60 out of 246 in the state with a 4-star rating. Knightdale High, however, is rated just 1 star and ranks near the bottom fifth of all North Carolina high schools. About two-thirds of its students receive free or reduced lunch, a sign that the school serves a heavily economically disadvantaged population.
Academically, Knightdale trails both its district and the state in every tested subject. On 2025-26 EOC exams, Biology proficiency was 40.9%, compared with 69.1% for the district and 58.5% statewide; English II proficiency was 54.7%, versus 75.7% and 64.6%; Math III was 50.4%, versus 76.4% and 68.9%. Math I is the weakest area, with only 27.9% proficient versus 36.6% for the district and 42.1% for the state. The school's graduation rate of 85.4% is below the district's 91.3% and the state's 88.8%. Chronic absenteeism is a major alarm: 44.7% of students are chronically absent, more than double the district rate of 20.5% and far above the state rate of 24.2%.
There is encouraging news, as Knightdale improved in every subject from the prior year, with gains between roughly 7 and 13 percentage points that outpaced both district and state improvements. Its state rank has climbed from the 12th percentile in 2023-24 to the 20th percentile in 2025-26, though it remains a 1-star school. Because this zip code has only one high school, there is no local school to benchmark against, so parents should interpret Knightdale's performance through the lens of its very high poverty and absenteeism rates. The school is making real progress, but it still has a long way to go to close the sizable gap with its high-performing district, especially in math.
Thank you for your feedback!