Summary:
Zip code 22960 has just one high school, Orange County High, which serves grades 9-12 and enrolls 1,477 students as part of the Orange County Public Schools district. The district ranks 86th out of 131 in Virginia (34th percentile) with a two-star rating. Orange County High improved its state ranking from 201st in 2023-24 to 188th in 2024-25, but then dropped to 230th out of 331 high schools in 2025-26, placing it in the bottom third of the state. The school operates with a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.2 and per-student spending of $7,795.
Despite the ranking dip, Orange County High has clear strengths. Its graduation rate of 97.4% tops the state average of 92.3%, and the dropout rate of just 1.6% is well below the 5.0% statewide figure. Mathematics is the standout subject: students consistently exceed state averages on Algebra I and Geometry SOL tests, with 9th-grade Geometry proficiency reaching 96-100% and 11th-grade Algebra I at 88-100%. Science results are mixed but sometimes strong, including 9th-grade Earth Science at 86.6% proficiency and 10th-grade Biology at 77.5%.
The biggest concerns are chronic absenteeism and humanities performance. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 31.1% is more than double the state rate of 14.8%, and likely contributes to academic struggles. Writing proficiency is alarmingly low at 26.3% in both 11th and 12th grades, compared to 79.9% and 65.0% statewide, while 12th-grade VA/US History proficiency sits at just 15.8% versus 54.3% statewide. Reading scores also trail state averages in upper grades. With 68.5% of students eligible for free/reduced lunch, the school serves a largely economically disadvantaged population. Improving attendance and building literacy skills would probably do the most to boost Orange County High's overall performance and future rankings.
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