Alabama’s credentials came out last Friday, and of the 139 school districts and six charter schools that received grades, 24 received an “A.”
Seventeen of those were repeat offenders from the 2018/19 school year, but five earned their first ‘A’ ever this year.
The 24 A districts have a few things in common, aside from the fact that they outperform the state in almost every category. They are all urban school districts, which means they are generally smaller, less populated, and have more resources than county schools, and none have earned less than a “B” since grading began in 2017.
The four district systems that earned A’s in 2019 have all dropped to B’s for 2022.
Three districts — Piedmont City, Fort Payne City, and Dale County — had more than half of their students in poverty, higher than the state’s overall poverty rate of 48%.
Five districts also had all schools in the district get an “A”:
- Schools in Hoover City – 16 schools
- Schools in Madison City – 11 schools
- Schools in Mountain Brook City – 6 schools
- Piedmont City schools – 3 schools
- Schools in Vestavia Hills City – 9 schools
Find more information about Alabama’s “A” districts, their schools, and their credentials, from highest “A” to lowest “A”. Where districts had the same total score, the order in which they are listed by highest completion rate (applicable to the Class of 2021) is:
Mountain Brook City – 98 points overall – 98.4% completion rate
0.3% student poverty
Total enrollment – 4,301
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 84%
Math skills – 77%
Scientific competence – 80%
Vestavia Hills City – 96 points – Completion Rate – 96.1%
2.9% student poverty
Total enrollment – 7,023
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 83%
Math skills – 72%
Scientific competence – 79%
Trussville City – 95 points – 97.9% completion rate
4.9% student poverty
Total enrollment – 4,885
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 75%
Math skills – 56%
Scientific competence – 67%
Piedmont City – Tie 4th – 94 points – 100% completion rate
63.3% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,077
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 58%
Math skills – 52%
Scientific competence – 47%
Saraland City – 4th place – 94 points – Completion rate – 95.9%
26.6% student poverty
Total enrollment – 3,220
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 72%
Math skills – 58%
Scientific competence – 64%
Auburn City – Four-way tie for 6th place – 93 points – 96.4% completion rate
25.1% student poverty
Total number of enrollments – 9,308
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 67%
Math skills – 54%
Scientific competence – 60%
Homewood City – Four-way tie for 6th place – 93 points – 95% completion rate
16.2% student poverty
Total enrollment – 4,216
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 75%
Math skills – 59%
Scientific competence – 68%
Hoover City – Quadruple tie for 6th place – 93 points – 94.2% completion rate
24.2% student poverty
Total enrollment – 13,372
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 70%
Math skills – 56%
Scientific competence – 60%
Madison City – Four-way tie for 6th place – 93 points – 93.8% completion rate
10.1% student poverty
Total enrollment – 11,988
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 73%
Math skills – 57%
Scientific competence – 62%
Winfield City – 4-way tie for 10th place – 92 points – 96.2% completion rate
39.5% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,214
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 59%
Mathematics knowledge – 40%
Scientific competence – 45%
Gulf Shores City – 4-way tie for 10th place – 92 points – 95.5% completion rate
11.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 2,268
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 64%
Math skills – 42%
Scientific competence – 58%
*The district opened in 2019-20, so this is the first time it has been graded
Hartselle City – Four-way tie for 10th – 92 points – 94.8% completion rate
16% student poverty
Total enrollment – 3,464
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 65%
Math skills – 47%
Scientific competence – 57%
Arab City – Four-way tie for 10th place – 92 points – 92.6% completion rate
18.1% student poverty
Total enrollment – 2,536
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 64%
Math skills – 55%
Scientific competence – 54%
Oneonta City – Tie Five for 14th – 91 Points – 97.9% Completion Rate
37.2% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,425
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 66%
Math skills – 35%
Scientific competence – 59%
Pike Road City – 14th place in five points – 91 points – 97.5% completion rate
14.4% student poverty
Total enrollment – 2,603
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 64%
Math skills – 34%
Scientific competence – 50%
*This is the first time the district has received an “A”.
Andalusia City – Tie five for 14th – 91 points – 97.3% completion rate
47.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,177
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 51%
Math skills – 43%
Scientific competence – 40%
*This is the first time the district has received an “A”.
Muscle Shoals City – Five-way tie for 14th place – 91 points – 96.3% completion rate
25.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,798
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 64%
Math skills – 51%
Scientific competence – 50%
Cullman City – 14th on five points – 91 points – 93.8% completion rate
19.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 3,194
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 70%
Math skills – 53%
Scientific competence – 62%
Russellville City – 19th place on six points – 90 points – 98.9% completion rate
24.1% student poverty
Total enrollment – 2,458
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 43%
Math skills – 31%
Scientific competence – 42%
*This is the first time the district has received an “A”.
Russellville City is one of two in Alabama with a majority Hispanic student population
Dale County – 6-way tie for 19th place – 90 points – 97.7% completion rate
56.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 3,166
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 52%
Math skills – 39%
Scientific competence – 38%
Fort Payne City – Tie six for 19th place – 90 points – 97.1% completion rate
60% student poverty
Total enrollment – 3,368
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 50%
Math skills – 34%
Scientific competence – 33%
*This is the first time the district has received an “A”.
Alabaster City – Tie six for 19th place – 90 points – 97.1% completion rate
27% student poverty
Total enrollment – 6,241
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 57%
Math skills – 35%
Scientific competence – 41%
Opp City – Six-Way Draw for 19th – 90 Points – 96.6% Completion Rate
40.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,222
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 53%
Math skills – 33%
Scientific competence – 40%
Satsuma City – Tie six for 19th place – 90 points – 95.7% completion rate
41.7% student poverty
Total enrollment – 1,485
Artistic knowledge of the English language – 56%
Math skills – 39%
Scientific competence – 49%
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