While the U.S. is one of the most educated countries in the world, it doesn’t provide the same quality elementary school or secondary school education to all students. In many states, more affluent school districts receive a greater amount of funding per student than poorer districts.
Discrepancies between the rich and poor have been exacerbated even more this year by the COVID-19 pandemic. As states decide whether their school districts will have in-person learning this fall, studies show that low-income students will suffer the greatest “learning loss” due to partial or total remote learning. One contributing factor is that people in low-income districts are less likely to have the technological resources they need.
States that provide equitable funding to all school districts can help prevent poor students from having lower graduation rates, lower rates of pursuing higher education and smaller future incomes than their wealthy peers. The difference is dramatic: College graduates have $460 - $1,154 higher median weekly earnings than people with a high school diploma and no college experience, depending on the degree.
North Carolina has the most equitable school districts in the U.S. overall, but some districts within the state are fairer than others. To find out where school funding is distributed most equitably, WalletHub scored 115 districts in North Carolina based on two metrics: average household income and expenditures for public elementary and secondary schools per pupil. Read on for the district ranking and a complete description of our methodology.
Main Findings
Note: For visual purposes, we included only the top 7 school districts by enrollment from each category. Rank 1 on the “Expenditures Ranking” means highest expenditures and Rank 1 on “Income Ranking” means lowest income.
Most & Least Equitable School Districts in North Carolina
| Rank* | School District | Score | Expeditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Schools per Pupil | Income by School District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington County School | 0.34 | $12,531 | $35,512 |
| 2 | Elizabeth City-Pasquotank County Schools | 0.34 | $9,721 | $48,279 |
| 3 | Elkin City Schools | 0.46 | $9,826 | $47,431 |
| 4 | Catawba County School | 1.21 | $8,483 | $54,305 |
| 5 | Alleghany County School District | 1.27 | $11,918 | $37,558 |
| 6 | Haywood County School | 1.28 | $9,222 | $49,800 |
| 7 | Henderson County School District | 1.42 | $8,832 | $52,815 |
| 8 | Warren County School | 1.42 | $12,542 | $35,962 |
| 9 | Kannapolis City School | 1.75 | $9,542 | $48,127 |
| 10 | Pender County School | 1.97 | $8,850 | $52,989 |
| 11 | Forsyth County-Winston Salem Schools | 2.26 | $9,509 | $50,128 |
| 12 | Stanly County School | 2.74 | $9,120 | $49,590 |
| 13 | Avery County School | 2.84 | $11,631 | $38,134 |
| 14 | Rowan County School | 2.91 | $9,234 | $48,991 |
| 15 | Davidson County Schools | 3.01 | $8,236 | $53,479 |
| 16 | Watauga County School | 3.18 | $10,026 | $45,268 |
| 17 | Stokes County School | 3.47 | $9,798 | $46,169 |
| 18 | Craven County School/New Bern | 3.50 | $8,761 | $50,870 |
| 19 | Lincoln County School | 3.96 | $8,175 | $53,318 |
| 20 | Caswell County School | 4.05 | $10,226 | $43,961 |
| 21 | Mitchell County School | 4.49 | $11,044 | $44,186 |
| 22 | Lee County Schools | 4.78 | $9,070 | $48,873 |
| 23 | Jackson County Schools | 4.92 | $9,853 | $45,254 |
| 24 | Montgomery County School | 4.98 | $10,487 | $42,346 |
| 25 | Harnett County School | 5.06 | $8,435 | $51,630 |
| 26 | Graham County School | 5.16 | $11,750 | $36,525 |
| 27 | Madison County School | 5.20 | $10,450 | $42,410 |
| 28 | Guilford County School | 5.29 | $9,609 | $51,072 |
| 29 | Onslow County School | 5.40 | $8,663 | $50,435 |
| 30 | Martin County School | 5.50 | $11,125 | $39,205 |
| 31 | Ashe County School | 5.64 | $10,721 | $40,978 |
| 32 | Cherokee County Schools | 5.72 | $10,863 | $40,294 |
| 33 | Iredell-Statesville Schools | 5.86 | $8,274 | $57,401 |
| 34 | Greene County School | 7.11 | $11,160 | $38,306 |
| 35 | Weldon City Schools | 7.33 | $13,813 | $32,917 |
| 36 | Franklin County School | 7.53 | $9,373 | $53,175 |
| 37 | Newton Conover City Schools | 7.83 | $9,394 | $45,993 |
| 38 | Gaston County School | 7.92 | $8,639 | $49,384 |
| 39 | Nash-Rocky Mount Public Schools | 7.98 | $9,375 | $46,012 |
| 40 | Yancey County Schools | 8.02 | $10,719 | $39,888 |
| 41 | Person County Schools | 8.48 | $10,431 | $48,811 |
| 42 | Buncombe County Schools | 8.75 | $10,049 | $50,667 |
| 43 | Transylvania County School | 8.88 | $10,952 | $46,629 |
| 44 | Hoke County School | 8.95 | $8,941 | $47,535 |
| 45 | Perquimans County School | 8.99 | $11,120 | $45,915 |
| 46 | Hertford County School | 8.99 | $11,255 | $37,005 |
| 47 | Beaufort County School | 9.08 | $9,775 | $43,688 |
| 48 | Macon County Schools | 9.34 | $9,768 | $43,597 |
| 49 | Edenton-Chowan County Schools | 9.40 | $11,887 | $42,621 |
| 50 | Alexander County Schools | 9.52 | $9,450 | $44,961 |
| 51 | Johnston County Schools | 9.63 | $8,780 | $56,842 |
| 52 | Halifax County School | 9.64 | $12,262 | $32,130 |
| 53 | Clay County School District | 10.77 | $10,679 | $38,801 |
| 54 | Northampton County School | 10.91 | $13,608 | $35,499 |
| 55 | Cumberland County School | 11.68 | $8,989 | $46,057 |
| 56 | Mcdowell County School | 11.98 | $10,091 | $40,913 |
| 57 | Scotland County Schools | 12.03 | $11,252 | $35,617 |
| 58 | Rutherford County Schools | 12.11 | $10,203 | $40,347 |
| 59 | Randolph County School | 12.17 | $8,634 | $47,446 |
| 60 | New Hanover County School | 12.67 | $9,997 | $52,716 |
| 61 | Granville County School | 12.90 | $9,379 | $55,628 |
| 62 | Caldwell County Schools | 13.11 | $9,721 | $42,072 |
| 63 | Jones County School | 13.48 | $13,562 | $36,892 |
| 64 | Anson County School | 13.59 | $10,321 | $39,126 |
| 65 | Carteret County School District | 13.76 | $9,730 | $54,428 |
| 66 | Alamance County-Burlington School District | 13.97 | $8,827 | $45,735 |
| 67 | Roanoke Rapids City Schools | 14.82 | $9,474 | $42,406 |
| 68 | Pitt County School | 15.21 | $9,014 | $44,315 |
| 69 | Bertie County School | 16.08 | $11,385 | $33,143 |
| 70 | Wilson County Schools | 16.25 | $9,231 | $42,850 |
| 71 | Edgecombe County Public School System | 16.43 | $10,235 | $38,205 |
| 72 | Thomasville City Schools | 16.63 | $11,256 | $33,476 |
| 73 | Hickory Public Schools | 16.75 | $9,021 | $43,573 |
| 74 | Cleveland County School | 17.40 | $9,655 | $40,393 |
| 75 | Brunswick County School | 17.87 | $10,153 | $54,406 |
| 76 | Yadkin County Schools | 17.93 | $9,055 | $42,876 |
| 77 | Moore County School | 18.31 | $9,428 | $57,899 |
| 78 | Mt Airy City Schools | 18.32 | $10,505 | $36,107 |
| 79 | Vance County School | 18.35 | $10,243 | $37,282 |
| 80 | Surry County School | 18.55 | $9,342 | $41,286 |
| 81 | Swain County Schools | 19.07 | $10,447 | $36,025 |
| 82 | Davie County School | 19.11 | $9,573 | $57,611 |
| 83 | Rockingham County School | 20.10 | $8,919 | $42,490 |
| 84 | Burke County Board Of Education | 20.83 | $8,839 | $42,516 |
| 85 | Asheboro City Schools | 21.01 | $9,776 | $38,178 |
| 86 | Wayne County Schools | 21.03 | $8,890 | $42,192 |
| 87 | Gates County School | 21.83 | $11,039 | $52,205 |
| 88 | Polk County School | 22.33 | $11,832 | $48,834 |
| 89 | Wilkes County Schools | 22.69 | $9,022 | $40,829 |
| 90 | Whiteville City Schools | 23.65 | $9,536 | $38,051 |
| 91 | Columbus County School | 23.79 | $9,972 | $36,006 |
| 92 | Tyrrell County School | 24.12 | $14,956 | $35,472 |
| 93 | Pamlico County School | 24.15 | $12,873 | $44,947 |
| 94 | Sampson County School | 24.34 | $8,869 | $40,762 |
| 95 | Lenoir County School | 26.15 | $9,208 | $38,387 |
| 96 | Duplin County Schools | 26.48 | $9,072 | $38,850 |
| 97 | Mooresville City Schools | 26.49 | $9,157 | $62,905 |
| 98 | Bladen County Schools | 28.12 | $10,331 | $32,378 |
| 99 | Richmond County School | 28.51 | $9,474 | $36,091 |
| 100 | Cabarrus County School | 29.83 | $8,512 | $67,379 |
| 101 | Asheville City Schools | 30.91 | $12,299 | $50,671 |
| 102 | Camden County School | 31.03 | $9,521 | $63,349 |
| 103 | Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools | 31.53 | $9,360 | $64,312 |
| 104 | Clinton City Schools | 32.05 | $9,474 | $34,457 |
| 105 | Durham County Schools | 32.65 | $10,821 | $58,190 |
| 106 | Robeson County School | 33.77 | $9,470 | $33,679 |
| 107 | Lexington City Schools | 37.16 | $10,241 | $28,616 |
| 108 | Dare County School | 37.86 | $11,389 | $58,012 |
| 109 | Chatham County School | 38.34 | $10,223 | $63,531 |
| 110 | Currituck County School | 39.57 | $9,742 | $66,284 |
| 111 | Union County Schools | 48.83 | $8,677 | $75,397 |
| 112 | Wake County Schools | 54.38 | $8,897 | $76,956 |
| 113 | Orange County Schools | 62.86 | $11,594 | $68,617 |
| 114 | Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools | 67.29 | $12,254 | $67,663 |
| 115 | Hyde County School | 67.42 | $17,154 | $45,466 |
*1=Most Equitable
Methodology
In order to rank the states with the most and least equitable school districts, WalletHub first scored 12,919 school districts throughout the U.S. based on two metrics: average household income and expenditures for public elementary and secondary schools per pupil.
For expenditures, for each 1 percent above the state's average we removed 1 point from a base score of 50 points for each district. For household income, for each 1 percent above the state's average we added 1 point to a base score of 50 points for each district. The inverse was true for each 1 percent below the state's average.
The final score for each district was calculated by taking the absolute difference between the score for expenditures and the score for household income. We then ranked the districts based on the total score, with the lowest value, representing the most equitable, being ranked 1.
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from of the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics.