Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 27889

Zip code 27889 is home to one middle school, P S Jones Middle, which serves grades 6-8 in Washington, North Carolina, as part of Beaufort County Schools.

For parents, the most important takeaway is that P S Jones Middle serves a student body with very high economic need — 99.39% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and more than one in three students is chronically absent. These challenges are reflected in the school’s overall performance, which has stayed in the bottom third of North Carolina middle schools for three straight years, earning a 1-star rating. Across all subjects and grades tested in 2025-2026, the school scored below both district and state averages. The largest gap appears in 6th grade math, where only 38.2% of students are proficient versus 59.2% statewide. Reading scores are also consistently lower, with gaps ranging from 6 to 15 points depending on grade.

There is a notable bright spot: 7th grade math jumped by 12.2 points from the previous year, reaching 55.2% proficiency — nearly matching the state average of 56.2%. That is the school’s strongest relative subject-area performance. Several other upper-grade subjects improved as well, including 8th grade reading (+7.5 points), 8th grade science (+7.7 points), and 8th grade math (+2.6 points). The exception is 6th grade math, which slipped by 2.7 points. Even with these gains, the school’s statewide percentile barely moved from 29th to 30th, meaning other schools are improving at a similar pace. Compared to its district, P S Jones Middle is clearly below average — Beaufort County Schools ranks in the 61st percentile of districts, while this school sits near the 30th percentile of middle schools. For parents, the key watch items are improving attendance, supporting incoming 6th graders, and building on the clear momentum seen in 7th and 8th grade classes.