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Haywood County Schools officials cite resilience after storm-related learning losses; honor Governor’s School and AP scholars
Summary
Board members and district leaders presented state testing results showing a 2.8 percentage-point drop in the district performance composite after Hurricane Helene, highlighted regional strengths, and recognized students selected for Governor’s School and AP Scholar awards.
Superintendent Dr. Putnam summarized the district’s statewide academic results and urged a focus on recovery and student supports after Hurricane Helene disrupted the 2024–25 school year.
“Our performance composite in 2024 was 65.4. For the 2025 school year, it was 62.6,” Dr. Putnam said, calling the change “a drop in performance composite negative 2.8%.” He told the board the district lost 21 instructional days, an amount he called significant and likely related to the decline.
The district emphasized regional strengths despite the statewide slide. Dr. Putnam said Haywood County Schools ranked 11th out of 115 North Carolina school districts in performance composite and noted top regional results: first in the Western region for performance composite, biology and several grade-level assessments. He highlighted specific school achievements: Tuscola High School exceeded growth for a second consecutive year; Pisgah High School exceeded growth for the fourth consecutive year and led regional traditional high schools in overall performance composite; Haywood Early College showed 100% proficiency in English II and math I and ranked first among early colleges in the region.
The board heard that several schools did not meet expected growth and were being addressed with targeted supports. Dr. Putnam said the district will invest in coaching and materials for schools labeled "D" for growth and reiterated the district’s goal of returning to higher rankings.
The meeting also recognized students selected for the North Carolina Governor’s School and a long list of Advanced Placement awards. A staff presenter said three Haywood students attended Governor’s School in summer 2025 and thanked the Hammett Charitable Fund for paying tuition that enabled participation. Individual students who spoke described academic and social benefits; Cooper Crook of Pisgah High School said the program “allowed me to reignite the passion for learning that I have.”
The board and district leaders framed the testing results alongside the exceptional circumstances of the prior year and described steps taken over the summer to recover lost instructional time.
Looking ahead, district leaders said they will continue to prioritize supports for staff and students and to track recovery progress in coming months.
