The Summit Academy

The Summit Academy is a tiny high school in Marion, North Carolina, one of the schools within McDowell County Schools. The school works with 23 students in grades 6 through 12. That puts it 97% below the typical public school in North Carolina, which averages around 761 students.

McDowell County Schools comprises 16 schools with combined enrollment of 5,712 students; The Summit Academy is among them.

For racial and ethnic makeup, The Summit Academy records that the student body is overwhelmingly White (87%). Other groups include 9% Hispanic, 4% multiracial. Compared to McDowell County overall, the school's racial mix sits in roughly the same range.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 4 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 5.8:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 19.6:1, putting The Summit Academy tighter than the state norm the norm. An estimated 87% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is south of McDowell County's rate of about 98%.

In the broader community, census data for McDowell County shows median household earnings sit near $57,168, about 18% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. In all, McDowell County runs 16 public schools (combined enrollment of about 5,712 students), of which The Summit Academy is one.

Nearest neighbor: Marion Elementary School, around 0.7 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around The Summit Academy.

The campus sits in a town-based setting.

On the community side, members of the The Summit Academy community share and discuss classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.