High Schools in Tarrant City

There is just one high school in Tarrant City, Alabama—Tarrant High School—serving grades 7 through 12 with 597 students in a district that ranks near the bottom of the state academically.

For parents, the most important thing to know is that Tarrant High School faces severe academic challenges, but it also has a notable bright spot: a 94.3% graduation rate that beats the state average of 91.5%. However, this success story is complicated by the fact that only 1.69% of 11th graders are proficient in math, and just 7% are proficient in English. The school has ranked in the bottom 5% of Alabama high schools for three straight years with a 0-star rating. Chronic absenteeism is a major concern, with 30.3% of students missing significant school days—more than double the state rate. The student body is also economically disadvantaged, with 78.73% qualifying for free or reduced lunch. While the school spends a solid $11,985 per student, the results remain critically low, especially in math where proficiency rates hover between 1-2% across all grades.

There are a few encouraging trends, though. Science proficiency, while still far below state averages, is notably stronger than math—ranging from 11.86% to 14.29%—and showed improvement from the previous year. Eighth grade math and science also ticked upward. However, there's a puzzling "middle school cliff" in English: 7th and 8th graders show proficiency around 26-27%, but that drops to just 7% by 11th grade. The Tarrant City district's overall performance mirrors the high school's struggles. For parents, the key takeaway is that while the school graduates most of its students, the academic proficiency data suggests those graduates may not be fully prepared for college or career, making it essential to ask about intervention programs, attendance support, and how the school plans to close these massive learning gaps.