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PRESS RELEASE

Duplin County Schools • P.O. Box 128 • Kenansville, NC  28349 • (910) 296-1521 

State Releases 2025-26 Accountability Results
DCS Moves Forward with Purpose, Building on Progress and Focused on Continued Improvement

KENANSVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA – September 2, 2026 – Duplin County Schools’ steadfast dedication to student success continues to guide the district’s work and commitment to continuous improvement. With the release of the 2025-26 state accountability results, DCS recognizes the progress reflected across the district while remaining focused on opportunities for continued growth. 

According to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, North Carolina public school students marked another year of noteworthy academic progress in 2025-26, achieving a record-high graduation rate and improving performance on most standardized tests. The state four-year cohort graduation rate rose to 88.8% in 2025-26, thereby marking a new historic high. The all-subject and all-grade composite score for end-of-grade (EOG) and end-of-course (EOC) assessments reported 59.2% of North Carolina students proficient – the highest in the past three years. “These academic achievement results are a testament to the incredible work happening across North Carolina’s public schools,” North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice “Mo” Green said. “While I am pleased to see these results trending positively, including our highest graduation rate ever, I look forward to continued progress as we aim to achieve educational excellence for all North Carolina public school students and become the best public education system in the nation.”

Duplin County Schools demonstrated progress across several key academic measures, including gains in overall grade-level proficiency (Levels 3 through 5) and college and career readiness (Levels 4 and 5). Students in grades 3–8 showed overall improvement in proficiency across Reading, Math, and Science, with Science (Grades 5 & 8) proficiency increasing by 5.5 percentage points. 

At the high school level, Biology performance showed significant improvement, with proficiency increasing by more than 10 percentage points at the district level, and each high school reflecting comparable gains. English II proficiency and ACT performance also reflected positive gains, further demonstrating progress at the high school level. Further highlighting student success, the district’s cohort graduation rate increased from 82.9% last year to 84% this year. Together, these results reflect areas of positive momentum while reinforcing the district’s continued focus on strengthening student achievement and ensuring success for all.

At the same time, the results underscore areas requiring continued focus and intentional support, including performance in high school NC Math 1 and NC Math 3, as well as ACT WorkKeys results. Encouragingly, gains were made in English Learner (EL) Progress. Overall, the district recognizes the need to remain diligent and strengthen efforts to ensure greater progress moving forward. 

School growth outcomes reflect that two schools exceeded growth, four met growth, and seven did not meet growth. School performance grades for the district include two B's, three C’s, six D’s, and two F’s. Eight schools were designated as low-performing based on performance grades and growth outcomes. Since more than 50% of schools received this designation, Duplin County Schools is identified as a low-performing district based on 2025-2026 accountability results.

State and federal accountability model results include School Performance Grades, growth outcomes, graduation rates, ACT, ACT WorkKeys, and the progress of English Learners. Schools are held to expectations of meeting interim measures of progress leading to 10-year, long-term goals for career and college readiness. The following provides a snapshot of some district-level data points:

• The district overall grade level proficiency increased by 2.5 percentage points when compared to the prior year. Eleven out of the thirteen schools showed an increase in overall grade level proficiency.
• Positive gains in Grades 3-8 EOG Reading, Grades 3-8 EOG Math, Grades 5 & 8 EOG Science, High School EOC Biology, and High School EOC English II were achieved.
• Math Course Rigor remains higher than 95%.
• The 4-Year Cohort Graduation Rate is 84% compared to 82.9% in 2024-25.
• Overall EL Progress performance increased by 1.5 percentage points.
• Decreases were noted in the ACT Workkeys, NC Math1, and NC Math 3

“We are encouraged by the gains in proficiency across our district and proud of the hard work our students and staff demonstrate each day,” said Superintendent Mr. Daren Tyndall. “Accountability results provide an important snapshot of student performance and valuable information that helps guide our work, but they do not tell the complete story of the teaching, learning, growth, and opportunities taking place in our schools every day. As we celebrate areas of progress, we also recognize where additional work is needed. We will continue moving forward with purpose, using these results to strengthen our efforts, and remaining focused on success for every student, in every school, and in every area.”

Duplin County Schools remains deeply committed to personalized learning through its STEAMA framework (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math, and Agriculture). This approach, supported by our Board of Education, families, and community partners, ensures that students can discover and maximize their talents while preparing for the future.

For detailed information regarding School Performance, visit: Accountability Data Sets and Reports and the new NCDPI Accountability Interactive Dashboards.

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For more information, please contact the Superintendent’s Office at (910) 296-6615.

 

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