Schools in Zip Code 28170

Zip code 28170 in Anson County, North Carolina, contains five schools, all part of Anson County Schools, serving kindergarten through twelfth grade in a district ranked 189th out of 246 statewide.

Ansonville Elementary is the highest-ranked school in the zip code, reaching the 34th percentile with 2 stars, and is the only school posting above-state results: 4th grade math proficiency hit 72.7% compared to the state's 61.4%, and 4th grade reading reached 66.7% versus 57.7%. However, its small enrollment (just 158 students across grades K-6) makes its scores highly volatile; for example, 5th grade reading plummeted from 57.1% to 25.0% in a single year. Anson Middle, by contrast, is the clearest improvement story in the area: 8th grade science proficiency jumped from 30.8% to 55.9%, and 8th grade math rose from 27.1% to 43.8%, lifting the school from the 7th to the 20th percentile in state rankings.

Anson High School is the most concerning on attendance: 59.5% of students are chronically absent, well above the 24.2% statewide rate, and its 84.4% graduation rate trails the state's 88.8%. Academic proficiency is low across most End-of-Course tests, though Math III proficiency (57.1%) is surprisingly stronger than Math I (34.6%). Wadesboro Primary, the area's K-3 entry school, shows a serious early-literacy problem: only 29.0% of 3rd graders read proficiently versus 55.6% statewide. Meanwhile, Wadesboro Elementary (grades 4-6) struggles in reading, but made major gains in 5th grade math (18.8% to 44.4%) and 5th grade science (23.8% to 46.0%).

All five schools serve remarkably high-poverty populations, with 97.2% to 99.6% of students eligible for free or reduced lunch, and chronic absenteeism averages roughly 45% across the group. The unusual grade configuration (separate K-3, 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12 buildings) also makes it hard to follow student progress between transition points. Even so, there are bright spots: Anson Middle's substantial math and science improvements and Wadesboro Elementary's 5th grade gains suggest targeted effort is beginning to pay off, despite the steep systemic challenges these schools face.