These Are The 10 Dumbest Cities In Virginia

Recently, the Washington Post published a study on the smartest states in America.

In the categories of SAT scores and college graduation rate, Virginia ranked as the 13th smartest state in America, a little brighter than North Dakota, but a little dumber than Nebraska.

We’ll be looking at high school completion rates rather than college-related metrics of smartness, for the sake of figuring out which cities in Virginia are contributing to Virginia’s stupidity more than the rest.

After crunching the numbers, we came up with this list of the ten dumbest cities in the Old Dominion:

1. Emporia (Photos)
2. Rocky Mount (Photos)
3. Luray (Photos)
4. Petersburg (Photos)
5. Franklin (Photos)
6. Richlands (Photos)
7. Marion (Photos)
8. Orange (Photos)
9. South Boston (Photos)
10. Colonial Beach (Photos)

For more Virginia reading, check out:

• Worst Cities in Virginia
• Most Dangerous Cities in Virginia
• Safest Cities in Virginia

How we determined the dumbest cities in the Old Dominion

In order to rank the dumbest cities in Virginia, we had to determine what criteria defines a dumb person.

We started by making a list of every place in the U.S. with over 5,000 adults based on the 2014 American Community Survey. That left us with 78 places to rank. We then looked at the following dumb-tastic criteria for each of the places on the list:

• % of city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
• % of high school Dropouts (Ages 16-19)

Note: We also looked at the graduation rates of the entire population, not the current rates for high schoolers.

1. Emporia

Population: 3,843
Adults Without High School Diploma: 30.2%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 16.8%

When you look at the raw data, Emporia, way out on I-95 in the southern part of the state, is technically the dumbest city in Virginia.

The number of adults without a high school diploma is the 2nd highest in the state, and twice as high as the state average. Same goes for the high school dropout rate. So, when you add it all up, it’s both the adults and the kids who are to blame to Emporia’s educational woes.

2. Rocky Mount

Population: 3,608
Adults Without High School Diploma: 26.7%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 16.0%

Nearly 4% more of Rocky Mount’s adult population has a high school diploma by the age of 25, but they are still far behind when it comes to overall educational prowess, when compared to the rest of the state.

And like Emporia, the kids just refuse to stay in school. Their dropout rate is the 3rd highest in Virginia.

Rocky Mount is south of Roanoke.

3. Luray

Population: 3,442
Adults Without High School Diploma: 26.7%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 10.4%

Way out in the Shenandoah Valley you’ll find Luray, a smallish place that’s way behind, educationally. The adult population is the 3rd least educated in the Commonwealth.

However, the teens seem to be picking up the slack. While still 6% below the state average, the dropout rate is still far lower here than it is in the cities listed below.

4. Petersburg

Population: 22,015
Adults Without High School Diploma: 23.9%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 10.1%

Petersburg adults are the 6th least educated, and the high schools are the 9th least educated, in compared to all 78 cities we measured. That puts this medium-sized city just a short drive south of Richmond towards the top of this list.

5. Franklin

Population: 5,605
Adults Without High School Diploma: 21.9%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 15.5%

Franklin’s adult population is 2% smarter than those in Petersburg, however, the teen dropout rate is far higher. As a matter of fact, with more than 15% of Franklin’s current teens currently not attending class, they have the 4th least educated generation about to enter the workforce here, which is a problem that might loom larger here in a few short years.

Franklin is a relatively rural area west of Suffolk.

6. Richlands

Population: 3,894
Adults Without High School Diploma: 22.8%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 7.7%

The high school kids (ages 16-19) aren’t the problem in Richlands. While a 7.7% dropout rate is the 14th highest in the state, it’s only about 2% above the state average.

It’s the adults that need to hit the books. More than 1 in 4 residents above the age of 25 is walking around without a GED in this small city located in Tazewell County, in the far western side of the state.

7. Marion

Population: 4,628
Adults Without High School Diploma: 20.4%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 12.9%

At nearly 13%, the teens in Marion have the 5th highest dropout rate in the state of Virginia. But the parents can’t blame them; they are more uneducated that the kids are. 1 in 4 Marion adults is without a high school equivalent, which is 4% higher than the state average, and the 21st highest rate in Virginia.

8. Orange

Population: 3,276
Adults Without High School Diploma: 19.0%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 36.8%

The kids in the town of Orange are simply failing. At 36%, the dropout rate is by far the highest in the state, and one of the highest rates we’ve seen. That’s nearly five times higher than the state average.

Orange is a speck of a place halfway between Charlottesville and Fredericksburg.

This is the only city on this list where the teens are less educated than the adults. That’s a long-term problem that Orange will have to cope with soon.

9. South Boston

Population: 5,653
Adults Without High School Diploma: 20.2%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 12.9%

South Boston’s adults are just about as uneducated as those in Orange. However, the high school-aged population is much more educated.

But still, at 13%, that’s 5% below the state average, good for the 6th highest dropout rate in the state of Virginia.

10. Colonial Beach

Population: 2,691
Adults Without High School Diploma: 21.6%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 8.9%

Colonial Beach is a bit of an outlier here. On the coast of the Potomac River, it’s the only city on this list that’s not isolated in the middle, eastern or southern part of the state.

While the adults are way behind, education wise, the high school kids are ‘only’ .4% behind the state dropout average of 8.9%.

Believe it or not, but the Virginia state average for adults without a high school degree is 16%.

Putting a dunce cap on our analysis

If you’re measuring the locations in Virginia where there are a high number of teenage dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate list.
If you’re curious, here are the smartest cities in Virginia: Blacksburg, Vienna, Falls Church, West Point and Poquoson.

Other cities of note:

Fairfax: 8th smartest (8% of adults are without a diploma)

Virginia Beach: 9th smartest (6.5% of adults are without a diploma)

Bristol is the 17th dumbest, and Richmond is the 20th dumbest.

Detailed List Of Dumbest Cities In Virginia