Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 27820

Zip code 27820 is home to just one middle school, Conway Middle, a small school in Conway, NC, serving 259 students in the unusually wide grade span of 4 through 8, and operating within Northampton County Schools, a 1-star district ranked 217th out of 246 in North Carolina. Since there is only one school in this zip code, this summary focuses on how Conway Middle performs relative to its district and the state rather than against nearby middle schools.

Conway Middle serves an almost entirely economically disadvantaged student body, with 98.84% qualifying for free/reduced lunch, and it faces a chronic absenteeism rate of 45.2%, which is nearly double the state average of 24.2%. The school has earned a 1-star rating each of the past three years, and its state ranking has slipped from 595th out of 793 schools in 2023–2024 to 658th out of 778 in 2025–2026. On 2025–2026 EOG tests, Conway Middle fell below the state average on all 12 grade-level subject tests, but it outperformed its district on 7 of those 12 tests. Average proficiency across grades was 41.7% in math (district 39.0%, state 58.5%), 40.3% in reading (district 38.4%, state 56.0%), and 50.6% in science (district 48.2%, state 68.2%). Relative bright spots include 7th grade reading at 49.2% proficient and 4th grade math at 51.9%, while 6th grade reading (29.7%) and 7th grade math (30.8%) are the weakest areas.

With only about 52 students per grade, Conway Middle's scores can swing dramatically from year to year — 4th grade math jumped 25 points between 2024–2025 and 2025–2026 — so results should be interpreted cautiously, as cohort differences and classroom changes can drive large shifts. The school posts a favorable 13.6 student-teacher ratio and per-student spending of $13,857, yet those resources have not translated into high proficiency or strong attendance, suggesting that poverty and absenteeism are the dominant barriers. Overall, Conway Middle is a high-poverty school that struggles against state averages, but it is generally competitive with, or better than, its district on most tests.