Best Public Schools in Zip Code 27985

ZIP code 27985 is home to two public schools, Perquimans Central (grades PK–2) and Perquimans County Middle (grades 6–8), together serving a high-poverty school community within Perquimans County Schools, a district rated 3 out of 5 stars. There are no high schools, no alternative schools, and no schools serving grades 3–5 in the ZIP code, so families must look beyond 27985 for those grades. Both schools serve a nearly universal free/reduced-price lunch population: 99.29% at Perquimans Central and 98.97% at Perquimans County Middle.

Perquimans Central is not ranked on state tests because it ends at 2nd grade, but it stands out on attendance: chronic absenteeism of 22.0% is below the district's 23.1% and the state's 24.2%. Perquimans County Middle anchors the academic picture, improving from the 59th to the 66th percentile in state rankings and beating state proficiency in seven of the eight tested grade and subject areas in 2025–2026. Its strongest showing was 7th grade reading at 67.7% versus 56.3% statewide, and it also posted large year-over-year gains of +18.9 points in 7th grade reading and +10.4 points in 7th grade math.

Still, challenges exist at the middle school. Chronic absenteeism at Perquimans County Middle is 28.5%, roughly four points above the state average, and math proficiency falls steadily by grade, from 67.7% in 6th to 57.1% in 7th and 50.0% in 8th, where the school trails the state by a notable margin. Encouragingly, 8th grade science reached 69.9%, above the state's 68.6%. Per-student spending is similar at both schools — $11,892 at Perquimans Central versus $11,076 at Perquimans County Middle — with student-teacher ratios near 14:1 at each. Overall, 27985 offers a stable early foundation and an improving middle school experience despite high economic need.