Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 28532

Zip code 28532, serving the Havelock/New Bern area of North Carolina, contains three public middle schools—West Craven Middle, Tucker Creek Middle, and Havelock Middle—all part of Craven County Board of Education and serving grades 6 through 8. Tucker Creek is the clear standout: it ranks in the 88th percentile statewide (4 stars) with roughly 75% average EOG proficiency, placing it far above the district and state averages of about 55% and 58%. In contrast, West Craven ranks in the 9th percentile (0 stars) with only about 34% proficiency, while Havelock sits in between at the 24th percentile (1 star) and roughly 44% proficiency.

The gaps between these schools are striking. Tucker Creek’s average EOG proficiency is about 41 points higher than West Craven’s and about 31 points higher than Havelock’s—differences that play out across every subject and grade level. West Craven struggles most: its state percentile has fallen sharply from 29 to 22 to 9 over three years, and only 24.7% of 7th graders were proficient in math in 2025-26. Havelock, while flat over time, outperforms West Craven by about 10 points on average and shows a relative strength in 8th-grade science at 64.5%, essentially matching the district. Tucker Creek’s lowest proficiency area is still far above the other two schools’ best areas, and its 8th-grade science proficiency reaches 87.9%.

Economic disadvantage and chronic absenteeism track the achievement pattern closely: West Craven and Havelock have free/reduced lunch eligibility rates of 97.6% and 96.2%, respectively, while Tucker Creek’s is 44.6%. Chronic absenteeism ranges from 16.7% at Tucker Creek to 22.3% at Havelock and 26.7% at West Craven—a symptom and likely contributor to lower test scores. West Craven is trending downward rather than just staying low, with recent drops in reading and math. Meanwhile, Havelock spends more per pupil and has the lowest student-teacher ratio (12.7) yet still underperforms Tucker Creek, suggesting that class size and spending alone don’t explain outcomes. Families in this zip code face a true three-tier system, from a top-tier middle school to one of the state’s most challenged schools.