The top reported proficiency rate is 44% in Science. The lowest is 29% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Phillips Middle
Phillips Middle sits on a rural campus on the edge of Battleboro, a remote residential community that straddles Edgecombe and Nash counties just outside Rocky Mount. The school serves grades six through eight and enrolls a small cohort, concentrated among students from Black and Hispanic backgrounds. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a direct reflection of household economic hardship across the attendance zone.
The school's academic performance is below proficiency benchmarks across all tested subjects. In English language arts, a bit over one in three students scored at proficient or above on the state's End-of-Grade test. Math proficiency sits notably lower, at less than a third of the tested population. Science showed a somewhat higher share meeting the threshold, though the science assessment itself changed this year, making trend comparison difficult. For a parent evaluating this school, the core fact is that the majority of students are not meeting grade-level standards in reading and math. A parent may want to look into what supports the school offers for students below grade level, what homework and tutoring resources exist, and how the school tracks student progress across the year.
Battleboro itself is car-dependent and rural, with limited civic life on-site; residents drive roughly a short distance to Rocky Mount for most shopping, dining, and entertainment. The housing market here is affordable relative to state and national benchmarks, with a mix of new residential construction, older ranch-style homes, and available land. Growth is modest but steady, anchored in part by the Nutkao manufacturing facility. The community has no dedicated public transit.
A significant change is underway in the district itself. In the 2024-25 school year, the Nash-Edgecombe school demerger took effect, permanently redrawing district boundaries along county lines. Families on the Edgecombe County side of Rocky Mount who were once in Nash County Public Schools now attend Edgecombe County schools. This is a foundational shift that affects which schools families access and which district funds and policies apply.
The Edgecombe County Public Schools district has also deployed an AI-based weapons detection system across all schools, including Phillips Middle. Students walk through scanners daily as part of arrival. The district reports that weapon-possession incidents have declined measurably since installation, and a federal grant is funding additional security upgrades, including cameras and shatterproof window film. This represents a sustained commitment to entry screening that shapes the daily school experience.
State testing data for science is the only subject available; English language arts and math proficiency rates are reported above. Average scale scores and participation rates were not available. The neighbor comparison set, limited to the two districts in Edgecombe County, does not provide enough schools to benchmark Phillips Middle against its county peers in the usual way. A parent considering this school should also factor in its size and composition: it is a small, tightly clustered population with very high economic need and below-state-standard academic results. The question is less whether it is performing strongly and more what instructional and family-support structures it has in place to move students toward proficiency, and whether those align with a student's learning profile.
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