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Best Public Schools in Zip Code 28906

At a glance

Schools

2,266

Students

Top rankedTri-County Early College High186^th of 662 North Carolina high schools

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Biggest riser

Martins Creek Elementary up 425 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Peachtree Elementary 11.6 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

4★

3★

2★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

See the top-ranked North Carolina schools →

Summary:

ZIP code 28906 serves Murphy, North Carolina, with 10 schools run by Cherokee County Schools—four elementary, two middle, and four high schools spanning kindergarten through 12th grade—enrolling about 2,266 students across a small, rural, high-poverty footprint. Nearly every school reports 96% to 99% free/reduced lunch eligibility, and chronic absenteeism is a system-wide challenge: the district rate is 38.7%, well above the state average of 24.2%. Every school in the area exceeds that state mark, with rates ranging from 26.2% at Hiwassee Dam High to 77.7% at The Oaks Academy.

The strongest academic performers are Tri-County Early College High, Hiwassee Dam Middle, and Peachtree Elementary. Tri-County Early College High ranks in the 72nd percentile (4 stars), posts Biology proficiency of 90.5% and English II of 85%, and carries a 94.6% graduation rate despite the area's lowest per-pupil spending ($7,830). Hiwassee Dam Middle ranks in the 69th percentile with 6th grade math and reading both at 75%, and Peachtree Elementary reaches 78.3% in both 4th grade math and reading. Murphy Middle and Murphy High also have bright spots: 81.7% 8th grade science at Murphy Middle and a 94.9% graduation rate at Murphy High.

Martins Creek Elementary is the biggest improver, jumping from the 34th to the 63rd percentile as 3rd grade math and reading climbed to 87.5% and 83.3%. By contrast, The Oaks Academy remains a serious concern—6th percentile ranking, 76.9% graduation rate, low test proficiency, 77.7% chronic absenteeism, and the highest per-pupil spending ($16,426), likely reflecting a high-need population. The clearest red flag elsewhere is Murphy Middle's 8th grade math proficiency of just 28.6% versus the state's 53.0%, especially next to that school's strong science result. Overall, these are mixed schools: poverty and absenteeism are high, but 3rd grade reading is strong at every elementary school, several grade-level subjects beat state averages, and graduation rates at most high schools are excellent.

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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
Hiwassee Dam Middle	Public	6-8	337 Blue Eagle Circle	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 644-5115	122	9	13.5	96.7%	107 (87.7%)	1 (0.8%)	8 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (4.1%)	65.6	242^nd of 778 public middle schools	68.9%		67.9	222^nd of 773 public middle schools	71.3%	20								75.0	68.4	51.3				75.0	57.9	48.7		76.9	$13,929	$1,973	$11,956
Martins Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1459 Tobe Stalcup Road	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 837-2831	137	9	14.6	97.8%	122 (89.1%)	3 (2.2%)	6 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.2%)	61.6	554^th of 1492 public elementary schools	62.9%		36.1	979^th of 1490 public elementary schools	34.3%	425					87.5	47.6	57.9				83.3	63.6	57.9				57.9		$14,033	$1,512	$12,522
Murphy Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	315 Valley River Avenue	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 837-2424	467	39	11.9	99.4%	386 (82.7%)	11 (2.4%)	18 (3.9%)	6 (1.3%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	42 (9.0%)	59.4	592^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	60.3%		52.9	692^nd of 1490 public elementary schools	53.6%	100					65.9	65.3	68.2				63.4	63.9	56.1				59.1		$12,640	$1,376	$11,264
Murphy High	Public	9-12	234 High School Circle	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 837-2426	424	20	20.8	99.3%	340 (80.2%)	13 (3.1%)	36 (8.5%)	7 (1.7%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (5.9%)	44.6	371^st of 662 public high schools	44.0%		51.2	285^th of 641 public high schools	55.5%	86	47.1	66.0	45.7	68.2															$10,724	$1,248	$9,476
Peachtree Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	30 Upper Peachtree Road	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 837-2479	166	14	11.6	97.6%	142 (85.5%)	2 (1.2%)	12 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (4.2%)	64.3	512^th of 1492 public elementary schools	65.7%		81.5	231^st of 1490 public elementary schools	84.5%	281					66.7	78.3	68.8				60.0	78.3	56.3				50.0		$14,802	$1,757	$13,045
Ranger Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	101 Hardy Truett Road	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 644-5111	264	20	13.3	98.9%	241 (91.3%)	2 (0.8%)	13 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.0%)	45.1	823^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	44.8%		55.3	648^th of 1490 public elementary schools	56.5%	175					64.1	38.0	65.0				61.5	38.0	57.5				75.0		$11,981	$1,248	$10,733
Murphy Middle	Public	6-8	65 Middle School Drive	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 837-0160	353	23	15.4	99.2%	299 (84.7%)	7 (2.0%)	19 (5.4%)	3 (0.8%)	3 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (6.2%)	51.7	381^st of 778 public middle schools	51.0%		55.4	322^nd of 773 public middle schools	58.3%	59								56.8	48.7	28.6				51.4	65.0	60.0		81.7	$10,209	$1,096	$9,114
The Oaks Academy	Public	6-12	4700 East US 64 Alternate	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 837-6775	43	6	7.4	79.1%	39 (90.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (4.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (2.3%)								(n/a)	23.1		536.4																$16,426	$280	$16,146
Hiwassee Dam High	Public	9-12	267 Blue Eagle Circle	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 644-5115	137	9	15.9	97.8%	127 (92.7%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.4%)	34.3	445^th of 662 public high schools	32.8%		33	424^th of 641 public high schools	33.9%	21	38.9	55.0	48.3	63.2															$12,078	$452	$11,625
Tri-County Early College High	Public	9-12	4700 East US 64 Alternate	Murphy	28906	Cherokee County	Cherokee County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 837-6775	153	8	18.5	96.1%	112 (73.2%)	4 (2.6%)	24 (15.7%)	4 (2.6%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (5.2%)	70.5	186^th of 662 public high schools	71.9%		83.6	117^th of 641 public high schools	81.7%	69	90.5	85.0	50.0	60.0															$7,830	$280	$7,549

Cities Near Zip Code 28906

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Murphy	4.79 mi	10	250^th
Hayesville	17.6 mi	4	123^rd
Andrews	19.23 mi	3	391^st
Robbinsville	25.38 mi	3	415^th
Topton	30.66 mi	1

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.