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What's the most underrated thing about R-S Central High School that outsiders don't know?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
763
High
DISTRICT 454 · STATE 761
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·RUTHERFORD COUNTY SCHOOLS·NCES 370408001651
R-S Central High School
641 Hwy 221 North, Rutherfordton, NC 28139 · (828) 287-3304 · Rutherford County
GRADES 09–12HIGH41-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL763 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 35% of North Carolina public high schools
- CTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C+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
21.3:1
36 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 24.9:1 · STATE 19.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
98%
749 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 | 209 | 27% |
| Grade 10 | 186 | 24% |
| Grade 11 | 189 | 25% |
| Grade 12 | 179 | 23% |
Student demographics
47%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 50% · 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
56.5%
NC avg 50.9%
Math
19.9%
NC avg 52.2%
What this means: On the NC EOG / EOC, North Carolina's statewide test, about 57 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 20 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
38.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.9%
based on NC schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-10.7pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 38% 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 R-S Central High School
R-S Central High School's state test result (38.1% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-S Central High School this school | 763 | 98.2% | 38.1% |
| East Rowan High Salisbury | 986 | 98.4% | 34.5% |
| Rockingham County High Reidsville | 878 | 99.7% | 35.1% |
| Burns High Lawndale | 928 | 99.5% | 46.8% |
| East Rutherford High School Bostic | 623 | 98.4% | 46.8% |
| North Stanly High New London | 568 | 98.2% | 36.7% |
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 R-S Central High School ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 38.1% | #324 of 468 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 19.9% | #387 of 464 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 56.5% | #229 of 448 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 763 | #260 of 598 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 21.3:1 | #346 of 473 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 47.1% | #374 of 474 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 98.2% | #288 of 527 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -9.2% | #135 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
763
+24 (+3%) vs 2020
-24% since 1990-91, when it was 1,010
Student : Teacher
21.3:1
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 | 763 | 35.9 | 21.3:1 | 98% (749) |
| 2023-24 | 750 | 48.4 | 15.5:1 | 99% (742) |
| 2022-23 | 758 | 54 | 14.0:1 | 100% (755) |
| 2020-21 | 739 | 49 | 15.1:1 | 100% (736) |
| 2017-18 | 840 | 57 | 14.7:1 | 99% (831) |
| 2015-16 | 866 | 58 | 14.9:1 | 99% (861) |
| 2010-11 | 979 | 64 | 15.3:1 | 49% (475) |
| 2000-01 | 1,013 | 72 | 14.1:1 | 20% (199) |
| 1990-91 | 1,010 | 68 | 14.8:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for R-S Central High School.
Since 2017-18: students down 9% (840 to 763); teachers down 37% (57 to 35.9).
About R-S Central High School
At 641 Hwy 221 North in Rutherfordton, North Carolina, R-S Central High School operates as a medium-sized high school. It educates 763 students in grades 9 through 12.
Rutherford County Schools serves 7,394 students across 18 schools.
R-S Central High School is 71% White by enrollment. Smaller groups are 13% Black, 8% multiracial, and 8% Hispanic. County-wide, 82% of Rutherford County residents are White. R-S Central High School's diversity index is 47%, against a US figure of 70%.
The school employs the equivalent of 35.9 full-time teachers, for a ratio of 21.3:1. That is higher than the 19.6:1 average for high schools in North Carolina. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 98%. That tracks the 98% average for public schools in Rutherford County.
R-S Central High School is graded C+ by allk12, scoring above 35% of North Carolina public high schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
Based on its free or reduced-price lunch share, the BeatsExpectations model predicts an average proficiency rate on state tests of 48.9% for R-S Central High School. The school posts 38.1%, 10.7 points below the prediction.
Rutherford County has about 64,930 residents, and the median household income is $51,410, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 22% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 13%. In all, Rutherford County has 20 public schools and roughly 9,205 students.
R-S Middle School is the public school closest to R-S Central High School, about 0.5 miles away. There are 5 other public schools within five miles. Ranking the closest schools with test data puts R-S Central High School at 8th of 8.
NCES describes the area around R-S Central High School as Rural: Fringe, meaning in rural territory close to an urban area.
The school enrolled 763 students in 2024-25, 24 more than the 739 it had in 2020-21. The student-to-teacher ratio went up from 15.1:1 to 21.3:1.
Discussions about R-S Central High School may include science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Rutherford County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
64,930
Census ACS
Median income
$51,410
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
22%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
13%
Below federal line
Schools in county
20
9,205 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Rutherford County Schools
- East Rutherford High SchoolHigh · 623 students
- Chase High SchoolHigh · 596 students
- Ellenboro Elementary SchoolElementary · 567 students
- R-S Middle SchoolMiddle · 561 students
- East Rutherford Middle SchoolMiddle · 533 students
- Chase Middle SchoolMiddle · 484 students
Other schools in Rutherfordton
- R-S Middle SchoolMiddle · 561 students
- Rutherfordton Elementary SchoolElementary · 397 students
- Pinnacle Elementary SchoolElementary · 254 students
Nearby schools
- R-S Middle School0.5 mi · 561
- Mt. Vernon-Ruth Elementary School3.2 mi · 231
- Spindale Elementary School3.5 mi · 337
- Rutherfordton Elementary School4.7 mi · 397
- Pinnacle Elementary School4.9 mi · 254
- Rutherford Early College High School5.6 mi · 208
Frequently asked questions
About R-S Central High SchoolHow large is R-S Central High School?
R-S Central High School enrolls approximately 763 students in grades 09-12.
What age range does R-S Central High School serve?
R-S Central High School serves students from grade 09 through grade 12.
How many teachers does R-S Central High School have?
R-S Central High School employs 36 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 21.3:1.
What is the student diversity at R-S Central High School?
Student demographics at R-S Central High School are roughly 71% White, 8% Hispanic, 13% Black, 0% Asian, 8% Two or more.
What district is R-S Central High School in?
R-S Central High School is part of Rutherford County Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.