Purnell Swett High

Set in Pembroke, North Carolina, Purnell Swett High is a heavily attended secondary school, operated by Public Schools of Robeson County. It works with 1,583 students across grades 9 through 12. Compared to the state average of about 761 students per school, that is 108% bigger than typical.

Across the 36 schools in Public Schools of Robeson County (20,856 students total), Purnell Swett High accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

Demographically, Purnell Swett High logs that 79% of the student body identifies as Native American. Beyond that, the school lists 9% Black, 5% Hispanic, 4% multiracial, 2% White.

On the income-and-resources front, The school lists 87 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 18.2:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 19.6:1 average. Around 99% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy.

After controlling for student poverty, Purnell Swett High is in the bottom 10% of North Carolina public schools. The BeatsExpectations model predicts schools with this FRL share to land around 48.5%; Purnell Swett High posts 27.9%, -20.6 points below that line.

Zooming out to the county, community-level numbers for Robeson County indicate median household earnings sit near $41,978, 15% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 21%. In all, Robeson County runs 40 public schools (combined enrollment of about 21,625 students), of which Purnell Swett High is one.

The closest other public school is Pembroke Middle, roughly 2.5 miles away. 6 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Purnell Swett High at 6th of 7; the average score across the group is 43.9%.

Purnell Swett High operates from a countryside location.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Purnell Swett High has declined 4%, going from 1,644 students in 2018 to 1,583 in 2025.

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