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Best Public Schools in Zip Code 28601

New rankings! SchoolDigger recently updated its North Carolina rankings with newly released test scores for the 2025-26 school year.

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At a glance

Schools

6,592

Students

Districts

Top rankedSnow Creek Elementary332^nd of 1,492 North Carolina elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Snow Creek Elementary up 102 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Webb A Murray Elementary 13.9 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

4★

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Summary:

ZIP code 28601 in the Hickory, NC area contains 12 public schools—7 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 3 high schools—serving roughly 6,590 students across three districts: Catawba County Schools, Hickory City Schools, and Burke County Schools. This is a uniformly high-poverty area, with every school reporting a free/reduced-price lunch eligibility rate between 98.5% and 99.8%. Given that poverty is essentially constant across the ZIP, the wide range of academic outcomes between schools is especially striking.

The strongest schools show that high achievement is possible under these conditions. Hickory Career Arts Magnet High School is the standout high school, ranking in the 55th percentile statewide with a 92.2% graduation rate and an impressive 83.3% Math III proficiency. Among elementary schools, Snow Creek Elementary (78th percentile), Oakwood Elementary (77th percentile), and Clyde Campbell Elementary (76th percentile) form the top cluster. Ray Childers Elementary posts the lowest chronic absenteeism in the ZIP at just 11.8%. In the middle grades, Harry M Arndt Middle (53rd percentile) clearly outperforms Northview Middle (40th percentile), showing strong gains in 7th-grade math and reading year over year.

Some schools need serious attention. Viewmont Elementary ranks in the 6th percentile statewide, and Webb A Murray Elementary has fallen to the 19th percentile. W M Jenkins Elementary has also declined sharply, dropping from the 71st percentile two years ago to the 49th percentile today. Hickory High is the weakest high school, sitting in the 26th percentile with below-state-average scores in all subjects, while Saint Stephens High has a 41.5% chronic absenteeism rate—nearly double the state average. Math I proficiency is a systemic weakness across all three high schools. The takeaway for parents is to judge schools individually, not by district reputation: Oakwood Elementary thrives inside a lower-ranked district, while Webb A Murray Elementary lags within a higher-ranked one.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOC Biology (2026)	EOC English II (2026)	EOC Math I (2026)	EOC Math III (2026)	EOG Mathematics (2026)						EOG Reading (2026)						EOG Science (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOC Biology End of Course	EOC English II End of Course	EOC Math I End of Course	EOC Math III End of Course	EOG Mathematics 3rd Grade	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Ray Childers Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1183 Cape Hickory Road	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 324-1340	460	29	15.7	99.3%	304 (66.1%)	6 (1.3%)	58 (12.6%)	61 (13.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	30 (6.5%)	65.5	497^th of 1492 public elementary schools	66.7%		64.9	487^th of 1490 public elementary schools	67.3%	10					65.2	74.0	79.7				55.1	57.1	57.8				78.1		$10,027	$1,439	$8,588
Clyde Campbell Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	2121 35th Avenue Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2769	505	31	16.1	99.4%	305 (60.4%)	22 (4.4%)	86 (17.0%)	46 (9.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (9.1%)	73.4	355^th of 1492 public elementary schools	76.2%		71.1	372^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	75.0%	17					74.6	76.7	74.3	62.5			62.0	73.3	59.5	65.3			71.6		$9,813	$1,428	$8,385
Harry M Arndt Middle	Public	7-8	3350 34th Street Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 256-9545	601	36	16.7	99.5%	275 (45.8%)	44 (7.3%)	204 (33.9%)	28 (4.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (8.3%)	53.2	368^th of 778 public middle schools	52.7%		49.2	392^nd of 773 public middle schools	49.3%	24									56.2	53.1					56.7	51.1		72.4	$7,986	$496	$7,490
Saint Stephens High	Public	9-12	3205 34th Street Drive NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 256-9841	1,268	57	22.0	99.8%	560 (44.2%)	109 (8.6%)	442 (34.9%)	62 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	95 (7.5%)	49.9	330^th of 662 public high schools	50.2%		58	243^rd of 641 public high schools	62.1%	87	64.7	62.9	42.2	68.9															$8,502	$740	$7,761
Webb A Murray Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	3901 Section House Road	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2196	380	27	13.9	99.2%	102 (26.8%)	37 (9.7%)	184 (48.4%)	29 (7.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (7.1%)	23.5	1213^th of 1492 public elementary schools	18.7%		37.4	957^th of 1490 public elementary schools	35.8%	256					47.7	42.0	46.9	52.1			31.8	40.0	38.8	54.2			53.1		$10,328	$1,457	$8,872
Snow Creek Elementary	Public	K-6	3238 Snow Creek Rd	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Catawba County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 256-2335	551	36	15.1	99.5%	324 (58.8%)	14 (2.5%)	120 (21.8%)	40 (7.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (9.6%)	74.3	332^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	77.7%		67.7	434^th of 1490 public elementary schools	70.9%	102					79.5	75.3	77.9	74.0			69.9	64.2	55.8	57.5			75.6		$9,304	$1,117	$8,187
Northview Middle	Public	6-8	302 28th Avenue NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 327-6300	481	28	17.3	99.4%	191 (39.7%)	86 (17.9%)	110 (22.9%)	24 (5.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	68 (14.1%)	42	463^rd of 778 public middle schools	40.5%		40.4	468^th of 773 public middle schools	39.5%	5								59.1	43.8	49.4				53.2	47.9	52.1		60.2	$8,178	$747	$7,431
Hickory High	Public	9-12	1234 3rd Street NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 322-5860	1,024	38	26.6	99.7%	358 (35.0%)	196 (19.1%)	297 (29.0%)	47 (4.6%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.6%)	120 (11.7%)	28.5	487^th of 662 public high schools	26.4%		26.1	486^th of 641 public high schools	24.2%	1	45.0	54.6	30.8	56.0															$8,704	$694	$8,010
W M Jenkins Elementary	Public	K-5	3750 N Center Street	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 327-3491	276	18	15.4	98.9%	116 (42.0%)	35 (12.7%)	59 (21.4%)	18 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (17.4%)	48.3	762^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	48.9%		63.4	505^th of 1490 public elementary schools	66.1%	257					62.2	57.9	64.1				55.6	54.4	46.2				69.2		$9,330	$894	$8,436
Oakwood Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	366 4th Street NW	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 322-1340	336	20	16.9	99.1%	188 (56.0%)	59 (17.6%)	52 (15.5%)	10 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (8.0%)	73.8	344^th of 1492 public elementary schools	76.9%		81.1	233^rd of 1490 public elementary schools	84.4%	111					63.3	78.3	73.6				57.1	78.3	64.2				77.4		$8,723	$1,106	$7,618
Viewmont Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	21 16th Avenue NW	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 324-7049	509	30	16.9	99.4%	144 (28.3%)	129 (25.3%)	165 (32.4%)	15 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	56 (11.0%)	11	1406^th of 1492 public elementary schools	5.8%		17.1	1326^th of 1490 public elementary schools	11.0%	80					52.3	26.5	33.8				40.7	33.7	32.4				35.2		$9,264	$1,086	$8,178
Hickory Career Arts Magnet High School	Public	9-12	409 8th Avenue NE	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Hickory City Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 328-6738	201	13	15.2	98.5%	107 (53.2%)	22 (10.9%)	45 (22.4%)	6 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (10.4%)	53.3	300^th of 662 public high schools	54.7%		56.6	253^rd of 641 public high schools	60.5%	47	60.0	64.9	38.6	83.3															$15,342	$1,043	$14,299

Cities Near Zip Code 28601

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Hickory	0.49 mi	17	200^th
Conover	3.23 mi	5	293^rd
Taylorsville	5.81 mi	9	188^th
Hildebran	6.29 mi	1	216^th
Granite Falls	7.1 mi	6	184^th

See the top NC North Carolina cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.