Troy City

The Troy City school district in Pike County, Alabama, serves approximately 1,827 students across three schools: Troy Elementary School (PK-6), Charles Henderson Middle (7-8), and Charles Henderson High School (9-12). The district ranks 52nd out of 139 Alabama districts with a 3-star rating, and all schools serve predominantly economically disadvantaged populations (62-70% free/reduced lunch).

Charles Henderson Middle is the standout performer, earning the district's only 4-star rating and ranking in the 70th percentile statewide. Despite being the smallest school and serving the highest percentage of economically disadvantaged students (69.58%), it exceeds state averages in 8th-grade science (57.36% vs. 54.12%) and English (60.16% vs. 58.53%). Troy Elementary School shows strong early math instruction, with 3rd-grade math proficiency (58%) far exceeding the state average (44.89%), though its 4th-grade science (31.06%) lags significantly behind the state (50.23%). Charles Henderson High School is the weakest performer, with 11th-grade math (20.98%) and English (25.17%) proficiency below state averages, despite a graduation rate of 90.3%.

A critical concern is the dramatic math decline between 3rd and 7th grade, with proficiency dropping from 58% to 28.46%, suggesting curriculum alignment issues. Chronic absenteeism is also elevated across all schools (16.9-19.9% vs. 12% state average), with the high school highest at 19.9%. The district shows year-over-year volatility in test scores, and while the middle school receives the highest per-student spending ($10,270) and lowest student-teacher ratio (17.5:1), the high school's transition from a strong middle school program appears to be a point of significant academic decline. Despite these challenges, the district performs reasonably well given its demographic circumstances.