Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County
Sanford · NC · Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County · Public charter · K-12 combined
📄 Shareable scorecard →Similar nearby schools
Most similar nearby schools
Lee County High → Floyd L Knight Children Center → Southern Lee High School → Bragg Street Academy → Calvary Education Center → Lee Christian School → Grace Christian School → Central Carolina Academy →📋 At a glance
- 🎓 AP rigor: Bottom 6% of US high schools
Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts ACGR, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.
How Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County compares for families
What families should know about Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County.
- ▸ LocallyNC sits right at the US average on NAEP 8th-grade math — local school quality will set your kid apart.
- ▸ vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: Lee County High, Floyd L Knight Children Center, Southern Lee High School and 5 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.
Follow Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County
Get an email when Ascend Leadership Academy: Lee County's numbers change — new admissions results, enrollment shifts, test scores. A few updates a year, no spam.
SAT / ACT participation
CRDC federal data · 2020-21Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.
Chronic absenteeism
Why this matters to enrollment: A low chronic-absence rate is the cleanest school-level signal of strong family connection, classroom culture, and student engagement — all upstream drivers of enrollment stability. For school leaders: an Enrollment Trend Audit traces this dynamic forward →
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020–2021. Rate = students chronically absent ÷ 2024 total enrollment.
Counselor capacity
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020-2021. Counselor ratio = the school's most recent total enrollment ÷ counselor FTE. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommends a 250:1 maximum; the US national median across schools with on-staff counselors is roughly 430:1.
Enrollment trend & projection
Total enrollment + grade 12, NCES Common Core of Data (2021–2024).
If the recent trend holds…
At its recent rate of +9.8%/year, projecting from 2024's 628 students:
An extrapolation of the recent trajectory, not a forecast of the school's plans; ignores one-off shocks.
Revenue upside
At $8,477 per student in district revenue, the 376 students projected to be gained by 2029 represent ≈ $3,187,352/year in additional funding.
District total revenue ÷ enrollment, NCES F-33. Public funding largely follows enrollment, so a shrinking class is a recurring budget hit.
Nearby high schools — the local competition
The closest high schools families here also consider, and where their enrollment is heading.
| School | Type | Miles | HS enrollment | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lee County High Sanford |
Public | 2.6 | 1,459 | +1.7% |
| Floyd L Knight Children Center Sanford |
Public | 3.1 | 18 | — |
| Southern Lee High School Sanford |
Public | 3.4 | 1,180 | -4.5% |
| Bragg Street Academy Sanford |
Public | 3.7 | 31 | — |
| Calvary Education Center Lemon Springs |
Private | 4.3 | 44 | — |
| Lee Christian School Sanford |
Private | 4.8 | 297 | -3.6% |
| Grace Christian School Sanford |
Private | 5.5 | 749 | +179.5% |
| Central Carolina Academy Sanford |
Public · charter | 5.9 | 227 | +320.4% |