Polk County Schools

Summary:

The Polk County Schools district in North Carolina consists of 7 schools, including 4 elementary schools, 1 middle school, 2 high schools (with 1 early college), and no alternative schools. The district as a whole is ranked 30 out of 242 districts in the state and is rated 4 out of 5 stars by SchoolDigger.

Within the district, a few schools stand out. Saluda Elementary School consistently performs very well, ranking in the top 100 elementary schools in the state. Polk County Early College is an exceptional high school, ranking in the top 30 in North Carolina. Tryon Elementary School is also a top performer, ranking in the top 150 elementary schools statewide.

The schools in the Polk County Schools district have varying levels of racial diversity and socioeconomic challenges, with many schools having high percentages of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. While academic performance has been relatively consistent, the data suggests that the district's standout schools, like Saluda Elementary and Polk County Early College, could serve as models for improvement across the district.

District Detail

125 E Mills Street
Columbus, NC 28722

(828) 894-3051

SchoolDigger Rank:
30^th of 242 North Carolina districts

See the 2024 North Carolina District rankings!

Grades served: PK, KG-12
Students: 2,166

Primary Schools: 4
Middle Schools: 1
High Schools: 2
Alternative Schools: 0

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
Tryon Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	100 School Place	Tryon	28782	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 859-6584	407	30	13.3	99.3%	275 (67.6%)	33 (8.1%)	65 (16.0%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.6%)	76.1	308^th of 1505 public elementary schools	79.5%		86.9	144^th of 1502 public elementary schools	90.4%	164					88.0	68.5	66.0				50.0	68.5	66.0				71.7		$12,033	$1,081	$10,952
Saluda Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	214 E Main Street	Saluda	28773	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 894-1040	146	15	9.7	39.7%	136 (93.2%)	1 (0.7%)	5 (3.4%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.1%)	91.7	91^st of 1505 public elementary schools	94.0%		80.9	217^th of 1502 public elementary schools	85.6%	126					85.7	85.7	80.0				64.3	81.0	70.0				90.0		$13,956	$1,586	$12,371
Sunny View Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	86 Sunny View School Road	Mill Spring	28756	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 894-1050	134	12	11.2	97.8%	123 (91.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.2%)	2 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.5%)	70	401^st of 1505 public elementary schools	73.4%		60.4	571^st of 1502 public elementary schools	62.0%	170					78.9	74.2	50.0				47.4	54.8	64.3				85.7		$15,864	$1,636	$14,228
Polk Central Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2141 South NC9 Hwy	Mill Spring	28756	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 894-8233	341	30	11.3	99.1%	249 (73.0%)	18 (5.3%)	45 (13.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	26 (7.6%)	63.3	521^st of 1505 public elementary schools	65.4%		85.9	151^st of 1502 public elementary schools	89.9%	370					73.7	58.8	65.5				52.6	47.1	55.2				72.4		$12,367	$1,550	$10,818
Polk County High School	Public	9-12	1681 East NC 108 Hwy	Columbus	28722	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 894-2525	579	40	14.4	52.0%	426 (73.6%)	32 (5.5%)	91 (15.7%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (4.7%)	50.8	292^nd of 640 public high schools	54.4%		60.8	220^th of 626 public high schools	64.9%	72	43.9	60.1	50.4	71.8															$12,130	$897	$11,232
Polk County Middle School	Public	6-8	321 Wolverine Trail	Mill Spring	28756	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 894-2215	475	39	12.2	55.8%	358 (75.4%)	34 (7.2%)	61 (12.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.6%)	73.9	180^th of 793 public middle schools	77.3%		77.9	156^th of 784 public middle schools	80.1%	24								58.3	55.9	55.4				64.7	57.3	68.1		82.5	$11,233	$636	$10,597
Polk County Early College	Public	9-12	1545 East NC 108 Hwy	Columbus	28722	Polk County	Polk County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 894-2698	84	4	21.7	46.4%	68 (81.0%)	1 (1.2%)	11 (13.1%)	1 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (3.6%)	94.8	29^th of 640 public high schools	95.5%		85.2	104^th of 626 public high schools	83.4%	75	93.3	94.1	100.0	92.9															$9,557	$127	$9,430

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Lake Lure Classical Academy	9.03 mi	1
Rutherford County Schools	9.28 mi	18	73^rd
Henderson County Schools	14.31 mi	23	83^rd
The Mountain Community School	17.83 mi	1	50^th
Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy	18.8 mi	1

Polk County Schools

District Detail

Polk County Early College

Saluda Elementary School

Tryon Elementary School

Polk County Middle School

Sunny View Elementary School

Polk Central Elementary School

Polk County High School

Districts nearby