1
What's the one class at Polk County High School every student should take?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
596
High
DISTRICT 324 · STATE 761
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·POLK COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370372000785
Polk County High School
1681 East NC 108 Hwy, Columbus, NC 28722 · (828) 894-2525 · Polk County
GRADES 09–12HIGH42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL596 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 63% of North Carolina public high schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B+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 high schools
Student : Teacher
18.6:1
32 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.8:1 · STATE 19.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
593 students
DISTRICT 98% · 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 | 166 | 28% |
| Grade 10 | 148 | 25% |
| Grade 11 | 156 | 26% |
| Grade 12 | 126 | 21% |
Student demographics
44%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 41% · 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
67.4%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
35.3%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 67 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 35 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
50.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.5%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+2.0pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 51% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 48% 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 Polk County High School
Polk County High School's state test result (50.5% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County High School this school | 596 | 99.5% | 50.5% |
| Chase High School Forest City | 596 | 98.7% | 52.3% |
| Owen High Black Mountain | 649 | 98.0% | 43.0% |
| Brevard High Brevard | 799 | 99.6% | 57.2% |
| West Stanly High Oakboro | 800 | 99.6% | 64.1% |
| North Wilkes High School Hays | 578 | 97.9% | 57.6% |
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 Polk County High School ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 50.5% | #202 of 468 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 35.3% | #238 of 464 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 67.4% | #141 of 448 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 596 | #314 of 598 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 18.6:1 | #238 of 473 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 44.1% | #393 of 474 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.5% | #126 of 527 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -4.5% | #209 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
596
-23 (-4%) vs 2020
-6% since 2000-01, when it was 635
Student : Teacher
18.6:1
was 15.1:1
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 | 596 | 32.1 | 18.6:1 | 99% (593) |
| 2023-24 | 593 | 42.1 | 14.1:1 | 99% (590) |
| 2022-23 | 579 | 40 | 14.5:1 | 52% (301) |
| 2020-21 | 619 | 41 | 15.1:1 | 34% (211) |
| 2017-18 | 624 | 49.5 | 12.6:1 | 38% (238) |
| 2015-16 | 637 | 49 | 13.0:1 | 42% (268) |
| 2010-11 | 722 | 49 | 14.7:1 | 40% (287) |
| 2000-01 | 635 | 59 | 10.8:1 | 20% (126) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Polk County High School.
Since 2017-18: students down 4% (624 to 596); teachers down 35% (49.5 to 32.1).
About Polk County High School
Polk County High School is a public high school in Columbus, North Carolina. Students in grades 9 through 12 attend the school, which enrolls 596 students. For comparison, high schools in North Carolina average about 761 students.
The district for Polk County High School is Polk County Schools, with 7 schools and 2,110 students.
Roughly 73% of students at Polk County High School are White. Beyond that, enrollment is 16% Hispanic, 7% Black, and 5% multiracial. The White share of the county population is higher, at 87%. Polk County High School's diversity index is 44%, against a US figure of 70%.
Federal data list 32.1 full-time-equivalent teachers at Polk County High School in 2024-25, for a ratio of 18.6:1. That is 1.0 students per teacher below the 19.6:1 average for high schools in North Carolina. The school's rate of free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is 99%. That tracks the 99% average for public schools in Polk County.
The allk12 Grade for Polk County High School is B. Compared with North Carolina public high schools, the school scored higher than 63% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
When test results are adjusted for free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, Polk County High School is 2.0 points above its prediction. Actual: 50.5%. Predicted: 48.5%.
County data help place the school in context: in Polk County, the median household income is $67,758, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 36% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 11%. Polk County is home to 7 public schools and about 2,110 public school students.
Polk County Early College is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles away. Within five miles of Polk County High School, there are 4 other public schools. In a group of 5 nearby schools with scores, Polk County High School ranks 5th on average proficiency.
The school's federal locale classification is Rural: Distant.
Over 4 years, Polk County High School's enrollment dropped 4%, to 596. The student-to-teacher ratio rose from 15.1:1 in 2020-21 to 18.6:1 in 2024-25.
Parents and students can post about sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater at Polk County High School. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Polk County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
19,891
Census ACS
Median income
$67,758
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
36%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
7
2,110 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Polk County Schools
- Polk County Middle SchoolMiddle · 454 students
- Polk Central Elementary SchoolElementary · 379 students
- Tryon Elementary SchoolElementary · 367 students
- Saluda Elementary SchoolElementary · 142 students
- Sunny View Elementary SchoolElementary · 120 students
- Polk County Early CollegeHigh · 52 students
Other Polk County High schools
One other US public school is named Polk County High. Polk County High School is the largest of the 2.
- Polk County High SchoolBenton, TN · 400 students
Nearby schools
- Polk County Early College0.2 mi · 52
- Polk County Middle School2.3 mi · 454
- Polk Central Elementary School3.6 mi · 379
- Tryon Elementary School4.8 mi · 367
- O. P. Earle Elementary6.2 mi · 424
- Landrum Middle6.2 mi · 218
Frequently asked questions
About Polk County High SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Polk County High School?
Polk County High School enrolls approximately 596 students in grades 09-12.
What age range does Polk County High School serve?
Polk County High School serves students from grade 09 through grade 12.
How many students per teacher at Polk County High School?
Approximately 18.6:1 students per teacher at Polk County High School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Polk County High School?
At Polk County High School, the student body is approximately 73% White, 16% Hispanic, 7% Black, 0% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Is Polk County High School public or private?
Polk County High School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Polk County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.