Burke County Schools

Summary:

The Burke County Schools district in North Carolina consists of 27 schools, including 14 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, 6 high schools, and 2 alternative schools. The district serves a diverse student population, with schools ranging from small alternative programs to larger comprehensive high schools. Overall, the district is ranked 110 out of 242 districts in the state and is rated 3 out of 5 stars by SchoolDigger.

Several schools stand out in the district, including Jimmy C Draughn High School, which is the highest ranked high school in the district and earns 4 out of 5 stars. It has strong test scores, with 79.7% proficiency in Math I and 79% proficiency in Math III. Liberty Middle is also a high performer, ranking 220 out of 793 middle schools statewide and earning 4 out of 5 stars, with exceptional math proficiency. At the elementary level, Mull Elementary stands out, ranking 272 out of 1,505 elementary schools and earning 4 out of 5 stars with very strong test scores.

However, the data also reveals significant disparities in academic performance across the district. Schools with high rates of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, such as Hillcrest Elementary (94.37%), Forest Hill Elementary (98.88%), and Hallyburton Academy (97.03%), tend to have the lowest test scores. The district's alternative schools also struggle, with the exception of Burke Middle College, which ranks among the top high schools in the state.

District Detail

700 East Parker Road
Morganton, NC 28655

(828) 439-4311

SchoolDigger Rank:
110^th of 242 North Carolina districts

See the 2024 North Carolina District rankings!

Grades served: PK, KG-12
Students: 11,770

Primary Schools: 14
Middle Schools: 5
High Schools: 6
Alternative Schools: 2

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				EOC Biology (2024)	EOC English II (2024)	EOC Math I (2024)	EOC Math III (2024)	EOG Mathematics (2024)						EOG Reading (2024)						EOG Science (2024)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOC Biology End of Course	EOC English II End of Course	EOC Math I End of Course	EOC Math III End of Course	EOG Mathematics 3rd Grade	EOG Mathematics 4th Grade	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 3rd Grade	EOG Reading 4th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Forest Hill Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	304 Ann Street	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-5906	269	18	14.8	98.9%	53 (19.7%)	19 (7.1%)	178 (66.2%)	9 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.7%)	22.3	1239^th of 1505 public elementary schools	17.7%		25.9	1155^th of 1502 public elementary schools	23.1%	84					41.5	30.4	50.0				29.3	37.0	42.1				55.3		$10,628	$1,562	$9,066
Freedom High	Public	9-12	511 Independence Boulevard	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 433-1310	1,414	74	19.2	63.6%	670 (47.4%)	109 (7.7%)	473 (33.5%)	58 (4.1%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	103 (7.3%)	37.9	388^th of 640 public high schools	39.4%		44.9	324^th of 626 public high schools	48.2%	64	48.5	49.6	34.5	57.2															$8,511	$796	$7,716
Hillcrest Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	201 Tennessee Street	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-4258	284	21	13.6	94.4%	41 (14.4%)	22 (7.7%)	201 (70.8%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.1%)	16 (5.6%)	25.7	1184^th of 1505 public elementary schools	21.3%		22.2	1226^th of 1502 public elementary schools	18.4%	42					42.9	47.6	48.8				38.1	35.7	36.6				51.2		$11,197	$1,694	$9,503
Burke Middle College	Public	11-12	1001 Burkemont Ave	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 448-3175	119	3	39.6	33.6%	59 (49.6%)	4 (3.4%)	19 (16.0%)	31 (26.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (5.0%)								(n/a)				79.5															$4,804	$268	$4,536
Mountain View Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	805 Bouchelle St	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-1584	677	44	15.4	85.4%	246 (36.3%)	45 (6.6%)	307 (45.3%)	13 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	64 (9.5%)	34.7	1015^th of 1505 public elementary schools	32.6%		40.2	926^th of 1502 public elementary schools	38.3%	89					55.9	49.1	52.0				28.8	45.5	38.2				63.7		$9,734	$1,324	$8,410
Burke Virtual Academy	Public, Virtual, Alternative	K-12	1951 Enon Road	Valdese	28690	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(828) 448-3175	119	7	16.4	58.0%	85 (71.4%)	8 (6.7%)	12 (10.1%)	8 (6.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (5.0%)								(n/a)										41.7						58.3		75.0
Ray Childers Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1183 Cape Hickory Road	Hickory	28601	Catawba County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 324-1340	457	31	14.9	74.6%	314 (68.7%)	9 (2.0%)	55 (12.0%)	51 (11.2%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (5.7%)	63.7	514^th of 1505 public elementary schools	65.8%		58.6	608^th of 1502 public elementary schools	59.5%	94					74.6	66.2	71.4				50.8	49.3	46.0				73.0		$10,027	$1,439	$8,588
W A Young Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	325 Conley Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 584-0632	306	28	11.0	77.5%	237 (77.5%)	4 (1.3%)	16 (5.2%)	30 (9.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (6.2%)	64.4	499^th of 1505 public elementary schools	66.8%		56.7	645^th of 1502 public elementary schools	57.1%	146					81.8	44.4	72.3				63.6	35.6	55.3				83.0		$10,309	$1,352	$8,957
Drexel Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	100 Alta Vista Street	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-3160	438	30	14.4	77.4%	305 (69.6%)	25 (5.7%)	50 (11.4%)	31 (7.1%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	22 (5.0%)	66.1	473^rd of 1505 public elementary schools	68.6%		75.6	310^th of 1502 public elementary schools	79.4%	163					50.7	64.9	76.8				45.1	55.4	64.6				80.5		$9,435	$1,433	$8,002
Icard Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3087 Icard School Road	Connellys Springs	28612	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 397-3491	260	18	14.7	74.6%	186 (71.5%)	2 (0.8%)	30 (11.5%)	38 (14.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.5%)	63.1	523^rd of 1505 public elementary schools	65.2%		65.6	493^rd of 1502 public elementary schools	67.2%	30					76.2	57.4	58.8				66.7	46.8	52.9				70.6		$9,629	$1,361	$8,268
Heritage Middle	Public	6-8	1951 Enon Road	Valdese	28690	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 874-0731	453	29	15.5	64.5%	342 (75.5%)	9 (2.0%)	40 (8.8%)	31 (6.8%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.7%)	27 (6.0%)	69.1	216^th of 793 public middle schools	72.8%		79.7	143^rd of 784 public middle schools	81.8%	73								64.8	57.4	66.0				54.7	56.8	57.3		70.7	$8,601	$890	$7,711
Salem Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1329 Salem Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-5901	401	27	15.1	69.8%	296 (73.8%)	4 (1.0%)	47 (11.7%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	42 (10.5%)	73.5	352^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	76.6%		74.3	337^th of 1502 public elementary schools	77.6%	15					82.5	74.2	66.1				57.1	64.5	40.3				85.5		$9,182	$1,028	$8,153
Valdese Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	298 Praley Street	Valdese	28690	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 874-0704	521	32	16.1	66.6%	400 (76.8%)	12 (2.3%)	40 (7.7%)	33 (6.3%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	33 (6.3%)	64.2	502^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	66.6%		65.8	486^th of 1502 public elementary schools	67.6%	16					67.1	58.4	62.9				58.5	51.7	56.2				74.4		$8,594	$1,111	$7,483
Hallyburton Academy	Public	6-12	205 South Main Street	Drexel	28619	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 437-4184	101	11	9.6	97.0%	70 (69.3%)	8 (7.9%)	5 (5.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.0%)	14 (13.9%)	5.3	615^th of 640 public high schools	3.9%		4.8	604^th of 626 public high schools	3.5%	11	20.9	16.0							20.0						6.7			50.0	$18,048	$1,530	$16,517
Glen Alpine Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	302 London Street	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 584-0661	279	23	12.1	81.4%	165 (59.1%)	19 (6.8%)	36 (12.9%)	20 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (14.0%)	52.6	706^th of 1505 public elementary schools	53.1%		65.7	491^st of 1502 public elementary schools	67.3%	215					78.6	51.9	63.6				42.9	46.2	45.5				68.2		$10,621	$1,368	$9,253
Hildebran Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	703 US Hwy 70 West	Hildebran	28637	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 397-3181	320	20	15.7	76.9%	243 (75.9%)	2 (0.6%)	27 (8.4%)	31 (9.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	16 (5.0%)	59.9	582^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	61.3%		68.8	425^th of 1502 public elementary schools	71.7%	157					59.5	69.8	60.4				38.1	51.2	54.2				85.4		$10,444	$1,872	$8,572
East Burke Middle	Public	6-8	3519 Miller Bridge Road	Connellys Springs	28612	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 397-7446	645	33	19.2	71.3%	489 (75.8%)	8 (1.2%)	65 (10.1%)	52 (8.1%)	2 (0.3%)	2 (0.3%)	27 (4.2%)	51.4	381^st of 793 public middle schools	52.0%		65.3	241^st of 784 public middle schools	69.3%	140								58.7	56.5	49.3				49.5	36.1	45.2		69.9	$8,638	$679	$7,959
Liberty Middle	Public	6-8	529 Enola Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 437-1330	457	28	16.2	58.4%	324 (70.9%)	11 (2.4%)	76 (16.6%)	21 (4.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.0%)	68.2	220^th of 793 public middle schools	72.3%		80.4	138^th of 784 public middle schools	82.4%	82								77.6	69.5	49.4				53.0	50.0	56.2		75.3	$8,674	$830	$7,844
North Liberty	Public, Alternative	PK, KG-12	523 Enola Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 437-9656	67	11	5.8	74.6%	47 (70.1%)	1 (1.5%)	13 (19.4%)	2 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (3.0%)	2 (3.0%)								(n/a)																			$33,576	$5,487	$28,088
Table Rock Middle	Public	6-8	1585 Nc 126	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 437-5212	502	31	16.4	70.5%	339 (67.5%)	40 (8.0%)	41 (8.2%)	32 (6.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (9.8%)	48.6	409^th of 793 public middle schools	48.4%		35	509^th of 784 public middle schools	35.1%	100								69.0	49.0	38.3				53.1	40.7	40.0		66.7	$9,032	$751	$8,280
East Burke High	Public	9-12	3695 East Burke Boulevard	Connellys Springs	28612	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 397-5541	879	50	17.6	63.5%	677 (77.0%)	15 (1.7%)	72 (8.2%)	69 (7.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.3%)	43 (4.9%)	54.5	265^th of 640 public high schools	58.6%		49.1	297^th of 626 public high schools	52.6%	32	61.3	59.8	53.9	54.8															$9,240	$806	$8,435
Mull Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1140 Old NC 18 South	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 437-5785	258	19	13.2	69.4%	206 (79.8%)	8 (3.1%)	27 (10.5%)	5 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (4.7%)	78.5	272^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	81.9%		70.1	408^th of 1502 public elementary schools	72.8%	136					75.8	72.9	67.3				60.6	64.6	57.7				84.6		$11,063	$1,857	$9,205
Oak Hill Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2363 Nc 181	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 433-1533	327	22	15.0	70.0%	213 (65.1%)	42 (12.8%)	19 (5.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (15.9%)	26.7	1169^th of 1505 public elementary schools	22.3%		39.8	939^th of 1502 public elementary schools	37.5%	230					51.0	36.5	40.7				45.1	40.4	40.7				48.1		$9,195	$1,040	$8,155
Robert L. Patton High School	Public	9-12	701 Enola Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 433-3000	752	40	18.8	54.8%	526 (69.9%)	16 (2.1%)	151 (20.1%)	20 (2.7%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (4.9%)	66	200^th of 640 public high schools	68.8%		56.6	249^th of 626 public high schools	60.2%	49	71.3	69.2	58.3	61.5															$9,266	$744	$8,523
Jimmy C Draughn High School	Public	9-12	709 Lovelady Road NE	Valdese	28690	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 879-4200	682	36	18.7	51.2%	488 (71.6%)	20 (2.9%)	71 (10.4%)	60 (8.8%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	39 (5.7%)	71.4	172^nd of 640 public high schools	73.1%		66.2	189^th of 626 public high schools	69.8%	17	60.0	65.6	79.7	79.0															$9,112	$776	$8,336
Walter R Johnson Middle	Public	6-8	701 Lenoir Road	Morganton	28655	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 430-7340	465	33	14.2	90.1%	116 (24.9%)	33 (7.1%)	283 (60.9%)	10 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (4.9%)	26.5	598^th of 793 public middle schools	24.6%		27	584^th of 784 public middle schools	25.5%	14								45.2	38.5	40.6				29.6	25.9	30.1		63.2	$8,789	$1,074	$7,715
George Hildebrand Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	8078 G Hildebrand Sch Road	Connellys Springs	28612	Burke County	Burke County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 879-9595	318	19	17.0	81.1%	258 (81.1%)	2 (0.6%)	12 (3.8%)	16 (5.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.2%)	23 (7.2%)	66.5	462^nd of 1505 public elementary schools	69.3%		70.8	395^th of 1502 public elementary schools	73.7%	67					61.8	77.8	68.0				41.8	68.9	58.0				72.0		$10,687	$1,383	$9,305

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Caldwell County Schools	4.26 mi	25	151^st
NC Health and Human Services	5.58 mi	11
The New Dimensions School	6.07 mi	1	40^th
Deaf and Blind Schools	6.5 mi	3
Hickory City Schools	11.41 mi	9	129^th

Burke County Schools

District Detail

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