Can I use Chatham County's school score to choose a house?

No. Use the Chatham County school score as a first-pass county screen, then verify the exact district, attendance boundary, transfer rules, and grade pathway for any address you are considering.

Does SchoolsByCounty confirm school attendance boundaries in Chatham County?

No. SchoolsByCounty publishes NCES and Census-backed public-school records. Attendance zones, magnet eligibility, charter lotteries, transportation, and transfer rules must be confirmed with local districts.

How should parents compare public schools in Chatham County?

Start with the 24 listed public schools and 4 district entries, then compare similar grade bands and confirm the address-level rules locally.

Chatham County Schools & Education

Name: Chatham County, North Carolina Education Data
Creator: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

Chatham County, North Carolina

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

School Score

42/100

Percentile-style score

Score Band

Midrange Signal

Graduation Rate

87.9%

National avg 87.5%

Education Statistics

Graduation Rate

87.9%

National avg 87.5%

State avg 88.0%

Per-Pupil Spending

$7,274

National avg $13,239

State avg $6,969

School Score

42/100

Percentile-style score

State avg 40/100

State Score Position

#35

of 100 counties by score

Education Data Brief: Chatham County

Measured School Summary

Chatham County performs at an average level with a school score of 42/100 and a solid graduation rate of 87.9%.

Funding Context

At $7,274 per pupil, Chatham County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.

Neighbor Context

Its school score is 5% above the North Carolina average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 0.1 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 4% higher than the state norm.

School Data Brief

How to read Chatham County before comparing districts

County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.

Local context that changes the interpretation

24 public schools and 4 districts are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.

Overall screen

42/100

Mixed county signal. Ranks #35 of 100 North Carolina counties with school score data.

Completion

87.9%

0.1 pts below the state average

Funding context

$7,274

$305 above the state average

School coverage

4 districts represented in the county school list.

Start with measured county context

This county needs a closer look at district mix, school level, and local context. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.

Check the local school mix

Chatham County has 24 public schools across 4 districts, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.

Verify local rules

Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.

View Public Schools Compare Counties

Parent decision brief

What Chatham County school data means before you move

County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.

Dominant-district county

Chatham County Schools carries most of the listed public-school system, with 21 of 24 schools. Start there, then verify whether your target address sits inside that district slice.

State position

#35

of 100 North Carolina counties with school score data. The county score is 2 points above the state average.

Data confidence

Usable

3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.

K-12 continuity check

These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.

Chatham County Schools

Elementary to high school visible

9,129 students

Elementary 11Middle 3High 5Other 2

21 listed schools in this county slice.

Chatham Charter

Other grade structure

574 students

Elementary 0Middle 0High 0Other 1

1 listed school in this county slice.

Woods Charter School

Other grade structure

508 students

Elementary 0Middle 0High 0Other 1

1 listed school in this county slice.

Willow Oak Montessori

Elementary school only in this slice

283 students

Elementary 1Middle 0High 0Other 0

1 listed school in this county slice.

District reality check

Chatham County Schools is the largest listed district slice, with 21 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.

What the data cannot tell you

NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.

Questions to ask before choosing an address

Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Chatham County?

Do the neighborhoods we like fall inside the same district, or are we comparing different Chatham County district systems?

What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?

Which charter, magnet, or virtual options require a lottery, application window, separate transportation plan, or address eligibility check?

Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?

Data Story

Charter Schools Represent Significant Portion of Chatham County Education

Education data brief for Chatham County, North Carolina.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorPublished Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Lead metric:District structure

Chatham County features a notable district structure where 12.5% of its 24 public schools are charter institutions. Out of the 10,494 students enrolled in the county, 9,129 attend Chatham County Schools, while the remainder are served by charter schools like Chatham Charter and Woods Charter School. The largest traditional school is Northwood High with 940 students. Per-pupil expenditure in Chatham is $7,274, which exceeds the North Carolina state average of $6,969 but remains well below the national average of $13,000. The county's composite school score of 42.0 is slightly higher than the state average of 40.3 but trails the national median of 50.0. The graduation rate of 87.9% is nearly identical to the state average of 88.0% and the national mark of 87.0%. Most schools in the county are classified as rural, with 19 of the 24 campuses falling into this category. See the NCES Common Core of Data for further district-level details.

Sources

NCES Common Core of Data
U.S. Census Bureau ACS

School Overview

Total Schools

in Chatham County

Reported Enrollment

10,494

24 schools reporting

School Districts

districts

Charter Schools

13% of total

School Level Breakdown

Elementary12

Middle3

High5

Other4

4 School Districts in Chatham County

Chatham County Schools

Chatham Charter

1 school

574 students

Woods Charter School

1 school

508 students

Willow Oak Montessori

1 school

283 students

24 Public Schools in Chatham County

Sorted by reported enrollment. Dedicated profile pages are available for 1 high-enrollment school; every NCES public school remains listed here.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Search schools

Level

Sort

Showing 20 of 24 matching schools

Public schools in Chatham County, including district, location, profile availability, grades, type, and enrollment.
School Name	Profile	District	Location	Grades	Type / Flags	Reported Enrollment
Northwood High	Profile	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Rural: Fringe	9–12	High	940
Jordan Matthews High	Record	Chatham County Schools	Siler City, 27344Town: Distant	9–12	High	913
Margaret B. Pollard Middle	Record	Chatham County Schools	Chapel Hill, 27516Rural: Fringe	6–8	Middle	768
Seaforth High	Record	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Rural: Distant	9–11	Other	732
Chatham Grove Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Rural: Fringe	PK–5	Primary	677
Siler City Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Siler City, 27344Rural: Fringe	PK–5	Primary	636
North Chatham Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Chapel Hill, 27517Rural: Fringe	PK–5	Primary	616
Chatham Charter	Record	Chatham Charter	Siler City, 27344Rural: Fringe	KG–12	Charter	574
Chatham Middle	Record	Chatham County Schools	Siler City, 27344Rural: Fringe	6–8	Middle	556
Pittsboro Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Town: Fringe	PK–4	Primary	510
Woods Charter	Record	Woods Charter School	Chapel Hill, 27516Rural: Fringe	KG–12	Charter	508
Virginia Cross Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Siler City, 27344Rural: Fringe	PK–5	Primary	455
Horton Middle	Record	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Town: Fringe	5–8	Middle	375
Chatham Central High	Record	Chatham County Schools	Bear Creek, 27207Rural: Distant	9–12	High	364
Bonlee School	Record	Chatham County Schools	Bonlee, 27213Rural: Distant	KG–8	Primary	292
Willow Oak Montessori	Record	Willow Oak Montessori	Pittsboro, 27312Rural: Fringe	KG–8	Charter	283
Silk Hope School	Record	Chatham County Schools	Siler City, 27344Rural: Distant	PK–8	Primary	276
Perry W Harrison Elementary	Record	Chatham County Schools	Pittsboro, 27312Rural: Fringe	PK–5	Primary	227
Moncure School	Record	Chatham County Schools	Moncure, 27559Rural: Distant	KG–8	Primary	213
J S Waters School	Record	Chatham County Schools	Goldston, 27252Rural: Distant	KG–8	Primary	193

Northwood High

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Rural: Fringe

Profile9–12High940 students

Jordan Matthews High

Chatham County Schools

Siler City, 27344 / Town: Distant

Record9–12High913 students

Margaret B. Pollard Middle

Chatham County Schools

Chapel Hill, 27516 / Rural: Fringe

Record6–8Middle768 students

Seaforth High

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Rural: Distant

Record9–11Other732 students

Chatham Grove Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–5Primary677 students

Siler City Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Siler City, 27344 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–5Primary636 students

North Chatham Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Chapel Hill, 27517 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–5Primary616 students

Chatham Charter

Siler City, 27344 / Rural: Fringe

RecordKG–12Charter574 students

Chatham Middle

Chatham County Schools

Siler City, 27344 / Rural: Fringe

Record6–8Middle556 students

Pittsboro Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Town: Fringe

RecordPK–4Primary510 students

Woods Charter

Woods Charter School

Chapel Hill, 27516 / Rural: Fringe

RecordKG–12Charter508 students

Virginia Cross Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Siler City, 27344 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–5Primary455 students

Horton Middle

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Town: Fringe

Record5–8Middle375 students

Chatham Central High

Chatham County Schools

Bear Creek, 27207 / Rural: Distant

Record9–12High364 students

Bonlee School

Chatham County Schools

Bonlee, 27213 / Rural: Distant

RecordKG–8Primary292 students

Willow Oak Montessori

Pittsboro, 27312 / Rural: Fringe

RecordKG–8Charter283 students

Silk Hope School

Chatham County Schools

Siler City, 27344 / Rural: Distant

RecordPK–8Primary276 students

Perry W Harrison Elementary

Chatham County Schools

Pittsboro, 27312 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–5Primary227 students

Moncure School

Chatham County Schools

Moncure, 27559 / Rural: Distant

RecordKG–8Primary213 students

J S Waters School

Chatham County Schools

Goldston, 27252 / Rural: Distant

RecordKG–8Primary193 students

Education Funding Detail

Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure

$7,274

State avg $6,969

Compare Nearby Counties

Review Chatham County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.

Open Compare

Browse Public Schools

See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.

View Schools

Frequently Asked Questions

Which North Carolina counties have the highest graduation rates?

Jones County (97.0%), Pamlico County (95.7%), and Currituck County (95.0%) currently lead North Carolina among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.

What is per-pupil spending like in North Carolina?

Across North Carolina counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $6,969. The highest current county values are Hyde County ($10,356), Tyrrell County ($9,655), and Orange County ($8,629). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

How should I read the school score in Chatham County?

Chatham County has a school score of 42/100, which is a midrange measured signal in this county-level index. This score is calculated from available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data, with school-level records shown separately below.

What is the graduation rate in Chatham County?

The high school graduation rate in Chatham County is 87.9%, which is above the national average of 87.5%. This figure is based on NCES district-level data for public high schools in the county.

How much does Chatham County spend per student?

Chatham County spends $7,274 per pupil annually on public education, based on NCES district finance data. Current operating spending per fall enrollment, including instruction, support services, administration, transportation, and operations. It excludes capital outlays and debt service in the SchoolsByCounty methodology.

Counties with Similar School Profile

McDowell County

North Carolina

+0 pts

42/100

School score

Beaufort County

North Carolina

-1 pts

42/100

School score

Bladen County

North Carolina

+1 pts

43/100

School score

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

Explore more data for Chatham County

Property Tax Cost of Living Crime Rate Income Health Disaster Risk Water Quality Weather County Score