Summary:
Valley Grande, Alabama is served by two public schools within the Dallas County school district, which ranks near the bottom of Alabama districts, and both schools serve predominantly low-income populations with high rates of free/reduced lunch eligibility.
Valley Grande Elementary School (PK-6, 353 students) is the stronger of the two schools, consistently outperforming district averages in nearly every subject and grade level. Its standout achievement is 3rd grade English proficiency at 69%, which exceeds the state average of 64.75% and dramatically beats the district's 49%. The school also showed significant year-over-year improvement in 3rd grade math, jumping from 32.5% to 43.1%. However, performance declines sharply after 3rd grade—5th grade math proficiency falls to just 9.4%, and 4th grade science sits at 25.5%. Chronic absenteeism is 17.6%, and the student-teacher ratio is 20.7:1.
William R Martin Middle School (7-8, 180 students) faces more significant challenges. Its ranking dropped from the 41st percentile (2 stars) in 2023-2024 to the 28th percentile (1 star) in subsequent years. Math proficiency is alarmingly low—8th grade math is just 6.2%—while English performance is relatively stronger, with 7th grade English reaching 52.5%, close to the state average. The most critical issue is chronic absenteeism at 35.7%, nearly triple the state average of 12.0%, which likely drives the poor outcomes. The school spends more per student ($9,601) than the elementary school ($8,689) yet achieves worse results. One bright spot: 8th grade science proficiency (42%) approaches the state average (54.1%), suggesting hands-on learning approaches may be effective. The transition from elementary to middle school is disruptive, with 5th grade English at 50.9% dropping to 39.5% in 6th grade.
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