Williston Middle, 401 S. 10th St.: grades 6-8, 666 students, a D (40) in North Carolina's 2025-26 school grades. Feeds New Hanover High.

Last checked Oct. 11, 2026. Sources: Williston Middle School, New Hanover County Schools, the N.C. Department of Public Instruction’s 2025-26 accountability data and the federal NCES school directory.

Williston Middle School is a New Hanover County Schools middle school for grades 6 to 8 on South 10th Street, just southeast of downtown Wilmington and inside the city limits. Its zone covers much of central Wilmington, and most of its students go on to New Hanover High.

Who to call
Address 401 S. 10th St., Wilmington, NC 28401
Phone 910-815-6906
Grades 6 to 8
School day 8:25 a.m. to 3:40 p.m.
District New Hanover County Schools

Principal

Principal Joellen McDonnell, according to the school’s website.

Enrollment and teachers

  • Federal count: 666 students in the 2024-25 school year, with 47 full-time-equivalent teachers, according to the NCES directory. That is about 14 students per teacher. The 2023-24 count was 661.

State report card

North Carolina grades every public school from A to F. According to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction’s technical guide, 80% of the grade comes from an achievement score built on state tests and other indicators, and 20% from students’ academic growth, on a 15-point scale.

School year Grade Score Growth
2025-26 D 40 Not met
2024-25 F 34 Not met
2023-24 D 44 Exceeded

A school with a D or F that does not exceed its growth target is designated low-performing. Williston is on the state’s 2025-26 low-performing schools list, and was also on the 2024-25 list.

From the state’s 2025-26 school assessment and indicator data:

  • 33.1% of state tests taken at Williston were at grade level or above, against 59.2% statewide.
  • Reading, grades 6 to 8: 26.8% at grade level. Math: 35.5%. Eighth-grade science: 44.2%.

The grades come from the state’s School Performance Grades dashboard data. The state’s interactive school report card for Williston covers 2024-25.

Attendance zone and feeder schools

Check any address on the district’s School Locator map or call the enrollment office at 910-251-2929. According to the zone map:

  • Elementary schools that feed Williston: Snipes and Sunset Park, most of Alderman and Forest Hills, part of College Park, and small parts of Pine Valley, Winter Park and Freeman.
  • High schools: most of the Williston zone goes to New Hanover High; parts go to John T. Hoggard High and Eugene Ashley High.

Calendar and bell times

The school day runs 8:25 a.m. to 3:40 p.m., according to the school’s website. Williston follows the district’s traditional calendar. From the 2026-27 calendar (PDF), students are off on:

  • Monday, Oct. 26: teacher workday
  • Tuesday, Nov. 3: Election Day, teacher workday
  • Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day
  • Nov. 25-27: teacher workday, then Thanksgiving
  • Dec. 21 to Jan. 1, 2027: winter break

More on Wilmington schools

Frequently asked questions

What grades does Williston Middle School serve?

Grades 6 through 8. Williston is a New Hanover County Schools middle school at 401 S. 10th St. in Wilmington, with 666 students in the federal 2024-25 count.

What is Williston Middle School’s school performance grade?

Williston earned a D, with a score of 40, in North Carolina’s 2025-26 school performance grades, up from an F (34) in 2024-25. The state designated it a low-performing school in both years.

Which high school does Williston Middle feed into?

Most of the Williston zone goes to New Hanover High, according to the district’s school locator map. Parts go to Hoggard and Ashley.

What time does Williston Middle School start?

The school’s website lists its hours as 8:25 a.m. to 3:40 p.m.