Summary:
Hamilton, Alabama is home to a single middle school, Hamilton Middle School, which serves grades 5 through 8 and enrolls 463 students in the Marion County district.
Hamilton Middle School is a high-performing school, consistently earning a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger and ranking in the top 20% of Alabama middle schools (75th out of 443). Its greatest strength is English Language Arts, where proficiency rates across all grades (66.4% to 77.6%) far exceed state averages. Eighth-grade science is also a standout subject, with 70.4% of students proficient compared to 54.1% statewide. However, math performance is more uneven. While 5th and 8th graders excel (67.5% and 46.9% proficiency, respectively), 6th and 7th graders lag behind state averages. Encouragingly, math scores improved dramatically from the previous year, particularly in 5th grade (up 15 points) and 8th grade (up nearly 14 points), suggesting recent instructional changes are taking hold.
The school also boasts a very low chronic absenteeism rate of just 7.4%, well below the district (11.0%) and state (12.0%) averages, which likely contributes to its academic success. This is especially notable given that 56.4% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, indicating a moderate-to-high level of economic need. The student-teacher ratio of 17.9:1 is on the higher side, which could be a concern for individualized attention, particularly in math where performance varies by grade. One data gap is that per-student spending figures are from 2018-2019 ($6,833), making it difficult to assess current financial efficiency. Overall, Hamilton Middle School is a strong choice for families, offering excellent literacy instruction and promising momentum in math, all while maintaining strong attendance.
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