Watauga County Schools
Watauga County Schools is a public school district based in Boone, North Carolina, serving 4,658 students in 11 schools. By enrollment it ranks #66 of the 112 North Carolina districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 41% of them. Its schools average 423 students each, about the same as the North Carolina median of 446. Its superintendent is Dr Leslie Alexander. It spends about $11,376 per student on day-to-day operations, about the state median. It has roughly 13.9 students per teacher.
How Watauga County compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Watauga County | North Carolina median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $11,376 | $11,153 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $7,224 | $6,920 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $56.6 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $56.7 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 335 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 13.9 | 15.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 358 | 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 →Dr Leslie Alexander
Source: NC Department of Public Instruction, EDDIE, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
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Peer districts in North Carolina
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public SchoolsElizabeth City | 4,760 | 12 | $11,980 | 15.7 | #65 |
| Watauga County SchoolsBoone · this district | 4,658 | 11 | $11,376 | 13.9 | #66 |
| Currituck County SchoolsCurrituck | 4,601 | 10 | $10,704 | 19.1 | #67 |
| Macon County SchoolsFranklin | 4,469 | 12 | $11,269 | 16.0 | #68 |
| Asheboro City SchoolsAsheboro | 4,405 | 8 | $10,790 | 14.9 | #69 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sevier DistrictRichfield, UT | 4,658 | $9,236 | 20.3 |
| Bozeman ElementaryBozeman, MT | 4,657 | $11,410 | 16.3 |
| Park Ridge CCSD 64Niles, IL | 4,654 | $19,819 | 12.2 |
| LiberalLiberal, KS | 4,654 | $11,699 | 14.0 |
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-watauga-county-schools