1
What advice would you give to incoming students at Murphy High?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
424
High
DISTRICT 197 · STATE 761
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CHEROKEE COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370078000323
Murphy High
234 High School Circle, Murphy, NC 28906 · (828) 837-2426 · Cherokee County
GRADES 09–12HIGH43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL424 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
20.9:1
20 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.4:1 · STATE 19.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
421 students
DISTRICT 97% · STATE 82%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 112 | 26% |
| Grade 10 | 103 | 24% |
| Grade 11 | 116 | 27% |
| Grade 12 | 93 | 22% |
Student demographics
35%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 30% · 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
55.8%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
50.0%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 56 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 50 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
51.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.5%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+3.0pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 51% 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 Murphy High
Murphy High's state test result (51.5% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murphy High this school | 424 | 99.3% | 51.5% |
| Uwharrie Ridge Six-Twelve Trinity | 409 | 99.3% | 39.7% |
| Hayesville High Hayesville | 366 | 99.2% | 50.6% |
| East Carteret High Beaufort | 521 | 97.7% | 69.9% |
| East Wilkes High School Ronda | 469 | 99.4% | 49.1% |
| Nesbitt Discovery Academy Asheville | 372 | 98.7% | N/A |
Matched among North Carolina high 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 Murphy High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 51.5% | #193 of 468 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 50.0% | #139 of 464 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 55.8% | #234 of 448 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 424 | #365 of 598 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 20.9:1 | #330 of 473 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 34.5% | #437 of 474 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.3% | #160 of 527 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -18.9% | #54 of 277 |
Ranked against other public high 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
424
-37 (-8%) vs 2020
-46% since 1990-91, when it was 782
Student : Teacher
20.9:1
was 12.1:1
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 | 424 | 20.3 | 20.9:1 | 99% (421) |
| 2023-24 | 433 | 28 | 15.5:1 | 99% (430) |
| 2022-23 | 489 | 34.5 | 14.2:1 | 55% (267) |
| 2020-21 | 461 | 38 | 12.1:1 | 29% (135) |
| 2017-18 | 523 | 32.3 | 16.2:1 | 47% (246) |
| 2015-16 | 499 | 33 | 15.1:1 | 47% (233) |
| 2010-11 | 505 | 34 | 14.8:1 | 52% (262) |
| 2000-01 | 575 | 41 | 14.0:1 | 27% (154) |
| 1990-91 | 782 | 43 | 18.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Murphy High.
Since 2017-18: students down 19% (523 to 424); teachers down 37% (32.3 to 20.3).
About Murphy High
Students in Murphy, North Carolina, attend Murphy High, a small high school. The school has 424 students in 2024-25 across grades 9 through 12. That compares with an average of about 761 students for high schools in North Carolina.
Cherokee County Schools has 13 schools and 2,992 students, and Murphy High is one of those schools.
A large majority of enrollment at Murphy High is White, at 80%. It is also 8% Hispanic, 6% multiracial, and 3% Black. Cherokee County's residents are about 91% White, 10 points above the school's share. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 35%.
The school has 20.3 full-time-equivalent teachers and a ratio of 20.9 students per teacher. High schools in North Carolina average 19.6:1, 1.3 fewer students per teacher than here. Of all students at Murphy High, 99% are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The average for public schools in Cherokee County is similar, at 98%.
A school with Murphy High's lunch-eligibility share in North Carolina is predicted to score 48.5%. Murphy High scores 51.5%, 3.0 points above that line.
The county, Cherokee County, is where the school is located. Median household income comes to about $53,628, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 24% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 7%. The county has 13 public schools and about 2,992 students.
Murphy High's nearest public school is Murphy Middle (less than a tenth of a mile). Inside a five-mile radius, there are 5 other public schools. Compared with its nearest neighbors, Murphy High ranks 7th of 8 on average proficiency.
NCES lists the school's locale as Rural: Remote. That means it sits in rural territory far from an urban area.
Enrollment in 2024-25 stood at 424, compared with 461 in 2020-21. There were more students per teacher in 2024-25 (20.9:1) than in 2020-21 (12.1:1).
This page is a place to ask questions and share updates about open houses, carpools, and field trips at Murphy High. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Cherokee County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
29,562
Census ACS
Median income
$53,628
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
13
2,992 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Cherokee County Schools
- Murphy ElementaryElementary · 467 students
- Murphy MiddleMiddle · 353 students
- Andrews ElementaryElementary · 330 students
- Ranger ElementaryElementary · 264 students
- Andrews HighHigh · 229 students
- Andrews MiddleMiddle · 167 students
Other schools in Murphy
- Murphy ElementaryElementary · 467 students
- Murphy MiddleMiddle · 353 students
- Ranger ElementaryElementary · 264 students
- Peachtree ElementaryElementary · 166 students
- Tri-County Early College HighHigh · 153 students
- Hiwassee Dam HighHigh · 137 students
Other Murphy High schools
One other US public school is named Murphy High. Murphy High is the 2nd largest of the 2.
- Murphy High SchoolMobile, AL · 1,212 students
Nearby schools
- Murphy Middle0.1 mi · 353
- Murphy Elementary1.1 mi · 467
- Tri-County Early College High3.7 mi · 153
- The Oaks Academy3.7 mi · 43
- Peachtree Elementary4.1 mi · 166
- Martins Creek Elementary5.6 mi · 137
Frequently asked questions
About Murphy HighHow large is Murphy High?
Murphy High enrolls approximately 424 students in grades 09-12.
What grades does Murphy High serve?
Murphy High serves grades 09-12.
How many teachers does Murphy High have?
Murphy High employs 20 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 20.9:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Murphy High?
At Murphy High, the student body is approximately 80% White, 8% Hispanic, 3% Black, 2% Asian, 6% Two or more.
What district is Murphy High in?
Murphy High is part of Cherokee County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.