Cary High

Located at 638 Walnut St, in Cary, North Carolina, Cary High is a sprawling 9-12 campus that teaches 2,044 students (grades 9 through 12), overseen by Wake County Schools. That puts it 169% above the typical public school in North Carolina, which averages around 761 students.

Cary High is one of 198 schools operated by Wake County Schools, a district that instructs 163,176 students overall.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Cary High reports that 43% of students identify as White, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups. Other groups include 29% Hispanic, 17% Black, 6% Asian, 5% multiracial. That is considerably less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 58%.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Cary High has 117 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 17.5:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 19.6:1 average. Around 39% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Cary High tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 67.1% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 55.1%.

In the area at large, Wake County reports that median household earnings sit near $105,768, roughly 57% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 5%. Across Wake County's 237 public schools (combined enrollment of about 184,790 students), Cary High is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: Adams Elementary, around 0.4 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Cary High ranks 8th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 69.7%.

The campus sits in a city-core setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count declined 14%: 2,390 students in 2018 compared to 2,044 in 2025. The Hispanic share of enrollment expanded from 24% to 29% over that span.

Within the allk12 community for this school, recent activity here tends to focus on school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Members of the school community can share what they know.