Summary:
Zip code 27807, which includes the Bailey community in Nash County, contains just two public schools: Bailey Elementary (PK–5, 580 students) and Southern Nash High (9–12, 1,048 students). There is no middle school in this zip code, so students in grades 6–8 leave the area before reaching high school. Both schools belong to Nash County Public Schools, a district ranked 158th out of 246 in North Carolina, and both serve extremely high-poverty populations, with more than 99% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.
The two schools are moving in opposite directions. Southern Nash High is the clear standout, having improved from the 41st to the 52nd state percentile (3 stars) in two years. Its graduation rate of 87.8% nearly matches the state's 88.8%, and math performance is exceptional given the poverty level: Math I proficiency soared from 36.2% to 57.5% in one year (15 points above the state), while Math III hit 78.7%. By contrast, Bailey Elementary has fallen from the 63rd percentile (3 stars) in 2023-24 to the 30th percentile (2 stars) in 2025-26. It is now below the state average on every tested grade and subject, with 5th-grade reading crashing from 55.1% to 39.5% proficiency in a single year.
Literacy is the shared weakness across both schools: the high school trails the state in English II, and every elementary reading score sits below state averages, implying a reading challenge that may persist into high school. Chronic absenteeism is slightly better than district and state norms at roughly 23%, but still means about one in four students is chronically absent. Because no middle school exists in this zip code, a direct elementary-to-high-school pipeline cannot be traced within the area. For parents, the takeaway is straightforward: Southern Nash High is an improving school with genuine math strength, while Bailey Elementary is struggling, especially in reading, and deserves close attention.
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