Avery County Schools is a PK– 12 graded school district serving

Avery County, North Carolina Avery County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,806. The county seat is Newland. The county seat was initially established in Elk Park when the county was first formed, but wa ...

, USA. Its eight schools served 2,239 students in the 2010–2011 school year.

History

Before the creation of Avery County in 1911, education was handled by

Caldwell Caldwell may refer to: People * Caldwell (surname) * Caldwell (given name) * Caldwell First Nation, a federally recognized Indian band in southern Ontario, Canada Places Great Britain * Caldwell, Derbyshire, a hamlet * Caldwell, East ...

, Mitchell, and Watauga counties, from which Avery was formed. The school district has grown to become the second largest employer in Avery County.

Student demographics

For the 2010–2011 school year, Avery County Schools had a total population of 2,239 students and 165.50 teachers on a FTE basis. This produced a student-teacher ratio of 13.53:1. Of the student total, the sex ratio was 50% male to 50% female. The demographic group make-up was: White, 91%; Hispanic, 8%; Black, 0%; American Indian, 0%; and Asian/Pacific Islander, 0% (two or more races: 1%). For the same school year, 62.08% of the students received free and reduced-cost lunches.

Governance

The primary governing body of Avery County Schools follows a council–manager government format with a five-member

Board of Education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...

appointing a Superintendent to run the day-to-day operations of the system. The school system is currently located in the North Carolina State Board of Education's Seventh District.

Board of education

The five members of the Board of Education meet on the first Tuesday of each month. The current members of the board are John Greene (Chair), Kathey Aldridge (Vice-Chair), Steve Smith, Bob Clark and Keith Tutterow.

Superintendent

The position of superintendent is currently vacant. The previous superintendent, Bryan Taylor, resigned the position in June 2019.

Member schools

Avery County Schools has eight schools ranging from

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called Pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

to twelfth grade. They are one high school, two

middle schools A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

and five elementary schools.

High schools

* Avery County High School ( Newland)

Middle schools

* Avery Middle School (Newland) * Cranberry Middle School ( Cranberry)

Elementary schools

* Banner Elk Elementary School ( Banner Elk) * Crossnore Elementary School ( Crossnore) * Freedom Trail Elementary School (Elk Park) * Newland Elementary School (Newland) * Riverside Elementary School (Newland)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Education in Avery County, North Carolina School districts in North Carolina