Carteret County Public Schools
Carteret County Public Schools is a public school district based in Beaufort, North Carolina, serving 7,847 students in 17 schools. By enrollment it ranks #46 of the 112 North Carolina districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 59% of them. Its schools average 462 students each, about the same as the North Carolina median of 446. Its superintendent is Richard Paylor. It spends about $11,366 per student on day-to-day operations, about the state median. It has roughly 15.8 students per teacher.
How Carteret County compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Carteret County | North Carolina median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $11,366 | $11,153 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $7,018 | $6,920 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $94.5 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $94.6 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 498 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 15.8 | 15.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 302 | 358 | 2024-25 |
Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The North Carolina median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.
Leadership
Moves tracker →Richard Paylor
Source: NC Department of Public Instruction, EDDIE, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
0 stories matchedWe haven't matched any stories to Carteret County Public Schools yet. Recent North Carolina coverage is on the North Carolina page.
Peer districts in North Carolina
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lenoir County Public SchoolsKinston | 8,331 | 17 | $10,366 | 15.5 | #43 |
| Sampson County SchoolsClinton | 7,986 | 18 | $10,767 | 17.1 | #44 |
| Franklin County SchoolsLouisburg | 7,978 | 16 | $10,538 | 15.5 | #45 |
| Carteret County Public SchoolsBeaufort · this district | 7,847 | 17 | $11,366 | 15.8 | #46 |
| Rutherford County SchoolsForest City | 7,394 | 18 | $11,543 | 18.4 | #47 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| WarwickWarwick, RI | 7,853 | $21,570 | 11.6 |
| East Penn School DistrictEmmaus, PA | 7,851 | $14,511 | 13.6 |
| Edgewood ISDSan Antonio, TX | 7,849 | $12,226 | 15.5 |
| Elmbrook School DistrictBrookfield, WI | 7,845 | $13,135 | 15.8 |
Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.
Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-nc-carteret-county-public-schools