Education in Burke County
Burke County has a county-wide public school system, providing greater efficiency and less duplication of services. There is no special school district tax. There is no cross-district busing.
For the 2007 - 2008 school year, the Burke County public schools enrollment exceeded 14,200 students. There are 17 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, and 4 high schools. At all grade levels, the curriculum in English/language arts, mathematics, social studies, physical education, health, music art, guidance, technology, and media skills follows the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. Approximately one-third of Burke County Public School teacher’s have master’s degrees.
Using three specially equipped buses, Betsie, Bust’r and Bee-Bee, Burke County’s mobile pre-kindergarten provides year-round preschool experiences for three to five-year olds who are not enrolled in any other childcare opportunity. Implementing the concept of reduced classrooms, all first, second and third grade classes have no more than 15 students.
For school year 2006-2007, Burke County’s high school students averaged 28 points higher on their SAT’s than the state average. Senior’s combined score of 1514 ranked Burke County schools 20th out of the 116 North Carolina school systems.
Chartered in 1964, the main campus of Western Piedmont Community College is located at the intersection of US 64 and I-40 in the southern section of Morganton. WPCC is accredited by The Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award the Associate Degree.
Off-campus facilities include: Courthouse Square in Morganton and the Morganton-Burke Senior Center. A vocational shop building and a greenhouse are located at the main campus.
The 46,000 sq. ft. Phifer Learning Resources Center (main campus) contains a library, conference rooms, drama studio, audiovisuals center, faculty offices, and classrooms.
With annual enrollments exceeding 13,000 students, Western Piedmont Community College has revised its “Master Campus Plan” to direct campus development into the twenty-first century. The College dedicated a new 42,000 square foot building named the Robert P. Carr Business Technologies Center in September 1997. Additional acreage totaling 209 acres was acquired by the College from the State in 2000. A 25,000 square foot Continuing Education Center was added on this new east campus property in 2003.
Caldwell Community College, Catawba Valley Community College and McDowell Technical Community College are less than a 30 minute drive from Morganton.
Lenoir-Rhyne College, a four year private institution, is less than 30 minutes from downtown Morganton. Appalachian State University in Boone and the University of North Carolina at Asheville are less than an hour away. Numerous universities including University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Western Carolina University in Cullowhee and Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem are within 100 miles of Burke County. Even NC State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are less than a three hour drive using I-40.