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Enrollment
632
Middle
DISTRICT 516 · STATE 605
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CRAVEN COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION·NCES 370331000383
H J MacDonald Middle
3127 Elizabeth Avenue, New Bern, NC 28562 · (252) 514-6450 · Craven County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL632 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 64% of North Carolina public middle schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded North Carolina public middle schools
Student : Teacher
14.3:1
44 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.3:1 · STATE 15.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
627 students
DISTRICT 76% · STATE 82%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 200 | 32% |
| Grade 7 | 215 | 34% |
| Grade 8 | 217 | 34% |
Student demographics
76%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 70% · STATE 71% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
NC EOG / EOC 2024-25 . % Grade Level Proficient (Level 3+)English Language Arts
53.0%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
51.1%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 53 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 51 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all North Carolina schools, those numbers are about 51 and 52.
Source: NC EOG / EOC. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
54.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.5%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+5.7pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 54% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% typical for North Carolina schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among North Carolina's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like H J MacDonald Middle
H J MacDonald Middle's state test result (54.3% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| H J MacDonald Middle this school | 632 | 99.2% | 54.3% |
| Kernodle Middle Greensboro | 707 | 98.2% | 65.6% |
| Lincoln Academy Greensboro | 696 | 99.6% | 64.4% |
| Southwest Guilford Middle High Point | 1,032 | 99.7% | 48.7% |
| Jamestown Middle Jamestown | 949 | 99.7% | 51.1% |
| Mendenhall Middle Greensboro | 905 | 99.7% | 41.9% |
Matched among North Carolina middle schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where H J MacDonald Middle ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 54.3% | #191 of 463 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 51.1% | #214 of 461 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 53.0% | #181 of 463 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 632 | #199 of 478 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.3:1 | #87 of 456 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 75.7% | #4 of 456 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.2% | #196 of 472 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -22.3% | #54 of 300 |
Ranked against other public middle schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
632
-136 (-18%) vs 2020
-51% since 1990-91, when it was 1,277
Student : Teacher
14.3:1
was 16.3:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 632 | 44.1 | 14.3:1 | 99% (627) |
| 2023-24 | 695 | 39.9 | 17.4:1 | 98% (683) |
| 2022-23 | 712 | 36.6 | 19.5:1 | 100% (709) |
| 2020-21 | 768 | 47 | 16.3:1 | 100% (765) |
| 2017-18 | 813 | 45 | 18.1:1 | 60% (491) |
| 2015-16 | 759 | 53 | 14.3:1 | 63% (478) |
| 2010-11 | 878 | 49 | 17.9:1 | 47% (412) |
| 2000-01 | 757 | 54 | 14.0:1 | 38% (288) |
| 1990-91 | 1,277 | 82 | 15.6:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for H J MacDonald Middle.
Since 2017-18: students down 22% (813 to 632); teachers down 2% (45 to 44.1).
About H J MacDonald Middle
H J MacDonald Middle is a public middle school in New Bern, North Carolina. Grades offered run from 6 through 8, with 632 students enrolled.
Craven County Board of Education operates 26 schools. Combined enrollment is 12,152 students.
Black students form the largest group at H J MacDonald Middle, 35% of enrollment. Next come 27% White, 14% Hispanic, 14% Asian, and 10% multiracial. That compares with about 20% Black among all Craven County residents. By the diversity index, H J MacDonald Middle comes in at 76%.
Dividing enrollment by its 44.1 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 14.3:1. Among middle schools in North Carolina, the typical ratio is 15.9:1. Eligible students account for 99% of enrollment in the free or reduced-price lunch program. That rate is above the 74% average among public schools in Craven County.
Measured against North Carolina public middle schools, H J MacDonald Middle receives a B. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Compared with North Carolina schools that have similar shares of low-income students, H J MacDonald Middle's results are 5.7 points above predicted: 54.3% against 48.5%.
In Craven County (population about 102,612), median household income is about $65,873, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 28% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 10%. H J MacDonald Middle is one of 27 public schools in Craven County, which together enroll about 12,526 students.
Nearest public school: Craven Early College High, about 0.4 miles away. Other public schools within five miles: at least 8. Compared with its nearest neighbors, H J MacDonald Middle ranks 4th of 8 on average proficiency.
The school's setting, by NCES definition, is Town: Distant: in a town some distance from an urbanized area.
Federal counts put enrollment at 768 in 2020-21 and 632 in 2024-25, an 18% decrease. The student-to-teacher ratio went down from 16.3:1 to 14.3:1.
The H J MacDonald Middle community page is open for posts about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Craven County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
102,612
Census ACS
Median income
$65,873
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
28%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
27
12,526 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Craven County Board of Education
- New Bern HighHigh · 1,637 students
- Havelock HighHigh · 1,014 students
- West Craven HighHigh · 751 students
- West Craven MiddleMiddle · 614 students
- Grover C Fields MiddleMiddle · 542 students
- Vanceboro-Farm Life ElementaryElementary · 494 students
Other schools in New Bern
- New Bern HighHigh · 1,637 students
- West Craven MiddleMiddle · 614 students
- Grover C Fields MiddleMiddle · 542 students
- Creekside ElementaryElementary · 453 students
- Albert H Bangert ElementaryElementary · 446 students
- Brinson Memorial ElementaryElementary · 446 students
Nearby schools
- Craven Early College High0.4 mi · 221
- Trent Park Elementary1.2 mi · 390
- New Bern High1.5 mi · 1,637
- Craven Virtual Academy1.5 mi · 117
- Grover C Fields Middle1.6 mi · 542
- J.T. Barber Elementary2.0 mi · 270
Frequently asked questions
About H J MacDonald MiddleHow many students attend H J MacDonald Middle?
H J MacDonald Middle enrolls approximately 632 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does H J MacDonald Middle serve?
H J MacDonald Middle serves grades 06-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at H J MacDonald Middle?
The student-to-teacher ratio at H J MacDonald Middle is approximately 14.3:1 (44 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at H J MacDonald Middle?
At H J MacDonald Middle, the student body is approximately 27% White, 14% Hispanic, 35% Black, 14% Asian, 10% Two or more.
What district is H J MacDonald Middle in?
H J MacDonald Middle is part of Craven County Board of Education.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.