Pinehurst Today

At Moore County Schools, 258 out of 936 junior students taking the science portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Science scores among the district's schools dropped to 27.6% compared to the previous school year, when 29% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.

Union Pines High School students stood out from schools in Moore County Schools in science, with almost 31.5% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (91). Meanwhile, students from North Moore High School struggled the most on the science portion, and only 11.5% were considered ready for college.

For comparison, North Carolina saw 26% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for science during the 2022-23 school year.

Besides science, 45.1% of Moore County Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 36.6% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 23.6% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Moore County Schools had an average college readiness of 15.3% across all ACT areas.

North Carolina's education system is still grappling with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the 2022-23 ACT results, college readiness among North Carolina students falls short of pre-pandemic levels, with only 17.1% meeting benchmarks.

Additionally, the state's performance is lagging behind the national average, which currently stands at 21%.

School	Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2021-22)	Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2022-23)
Union Pines High School	36.1%	31.5%
Pinecrest High School	30.1%	30.2%
Connect Academy	0%	21.2%
North Moore High School	10.1%	11.5%
The Community Learning Center @ Pinckney	7.7%	<5%
Moore County Schools	29%	27.6%