Surry Business

Elkin High School in Surry County is among the best high schools in the nation and ranks in the top six in North Carolina, according to U.S. News & World Report and School Evaluation Services, a K-12 education and data research and analysis company.

The two companies analyzed academic and enrollment information from more than 18,000 public high schools to find the very best in the United States. The top six North Carolina high schools, all silver-award winners, are Elkin, Murphy High in Cherokee County, Salisbury High, Statesville High, A.C. Reynolds High in Asheville and Terry Sanford High in Fayetteville.

Elkin is one of the smallest school districts in the state.

Elkin Superintendent Barry Shephard told the Elkin Tribune, “(The award) not only speaks to the fact that we are strong academically,” Shephard said, “but that we graduate students and take care of our students, and it recognizes that Elkin High School is a safe place to go to school. I think it’s an honor for the high school to be given that award, and I congratulate the principal and the staff.”

Principal Mark Byrd, who also served as vice principal at Elkin for two years, said he feels the award is a testament to the effort both students and staff put into doing a good job: “I think it speaks volumes for the type of students we have and the work that the students do and the work that the staff does to help prepare the students.”

“Across the board — (in) the entire district — … nobody has been complacent,” Byrd said. “Especially the teachers. They are always looking for ways to improve the kids. And I’d have to say the improved facilities have meant a lot. I think it is awesome that a school the size of Elkin is mentioned. I just think that speaks volumes. As a parent, it would really make me feel good about the school my child was at and the education my child was getting.”

Among the six North Carolina high schools on the U.S. News & World Report’s list, Elkin had a 1.12 rating in poverty-adjusted performance, meaning its poorer students performed above the statistical average for economically deprived students in North Carolina high schools. Elkin High School rated 25.3 on the college readiness index, a measure of the degree to which students master college-level material, and only Terry Sanford High School’s students in Fayetteville scored higher.