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Westhills Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
640th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 680 Alabama Elementary Schools
Better than 6% of Alabama elementary schools
Summary

Westhills Elementary School is a public elementary school in Bessemer, Alabama, serving 297 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Bessemer City School District, which is ranked 131 out of 135 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Westhills Elementary consistently ranks in the bottom quarter of Alabama elementary schools, with significantly below-average performance on state assessments across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2024-2025, only 13.16% of 3rd graders, 6.82% of 4th graders, and 14.63% of 5th graders were proficient or better in mathematics, compared to the state averages of 45.47%, 41.76%, and 39.31%, respectively. The school also struggles with English language arts and science, with proficiency rates well below the state averages.

The school's high percentage of students from low-income families, with 74.75% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in 2023-2024, likely contributes to the academic challenges. Westhills Elementary also has a higher chronic absenteeism rate compared to the state and district averages. While the school's per-student spending of $14,067 in 2018-2019 was higher than the state average, it is unclear how these resources are being utilized to support student learning. Addressing the persistent underperformance at Westhills Elementary will require a comprehensive, data-driven approach to improve instructional practices, provide targeted interventions, and ensure that resources are allocated effectively to meet the unique needs of the school's students.

277
Students ?
17.3
Student/teacher ratio ?
$14,067
Per pupil spending ?
74%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 710 Glenn Rd
       Bessemer, AL  35022

(205) 432-3500

District: Bessemer City


Students who attend Westhills Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Bessemer City Middle School
High:    Bessemer City High School
Racial breakdown:

African American:
85.2%
Hispanic:
11.9%
White:
1.4%
more
 See top rated Alabama elementary schools

 Compare Westhills Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Declining — 22nd percentile in 2015 → 6th in 2025
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Alabama average (24% vs 52% meeting standards)
!In the lower quartile statewide (6th percentile)
!Ranking has slipped — down 16 percentile points since 2015
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school24%
District avg24%
Alabama avg52%
640th of 680
Alabama public elementary schools ?
Bottom 6%▼ down 16 pts since 2015
From bottom 22% (2015) to bottom 6% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Alabama Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
4th of 5Elementary Schools in the Bessemer City
131st of 135Bessemer City among Alabama districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
20259.8640 of 6805.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202411.4623 of 6848.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202311.2622 of 6808.5%☆☆☆☆☆
202211.4628 of 6878.6%☆☆☆☆☆
202119.2560 of 69219.1%★☆☆☆☆
201936.9453 of 68133.5%★★☆☆☆
201826.3507 of 68025.4%★☆☆☆☆
201724.6533 of 68822.5%★☆☆☆☆
201621.2556 of 69119.5%★☆☆☆☆
201524.8539 of 69122.0%★☆☆☆☆
201417.5602 of 69513.4%★☆☆☆☆
201353.1401 of 69642.4%★★☆☆☆
201275.1130 of 69681.3%★★★★☆
201163.0285 of 70959.8%★★★☆☆
201049.3426 of 70439.5%★★☆☆☆
200962.2264 of 69662.1%★★★☆☆
200865.7226 of 69867.6%★★★☆☆
200742.8455 of 69834.8%★★☆☆☆
200657.7295 of 68957.2%★★★☆☆
200557.1298 of 68856.7%★★★☆☆
200445.7365 of 62341.4%★★☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202522.0377 of 42711.7%★☆☆☆☆
202426.8339 of 42019.3%★☆☆☆☆
202322.1367 of 42714.1%★☆☆☆☆
202220.8380 of 42610.8%★☆☆☆☆
202139.9235 of 42644.8%★★☆☆☆
201968.696 of 42677.5%★★★★☆
201853.9175 of 42358.6%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
20257.1637 of 6491.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202411.4611 of 6506.0%☆☆☆☆☆
202311.7592 of 6458.2%☆☆☆☆☆
202214.1583 of 65611.1%★☆☆☆☆
202118.0550 of 65616.2%★☆☆☆☆
201947.3363 of 64643.8%★★☆☆☆
201827.0501 of 64021.7%★☆☆☆☆
201714.4575 of 63910.0%★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202510.7635 of 6603.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202413.6618 of 6707.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202313.8574 of 6237.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202215.1581 of 65110.8%★☆☆☆☆
202130.3463 of 65329.1%★☆☆☆☆
201938.2423 of 64934.8%★★☆☆☆
201829.5495 of 65124.0%★☆☆☆☆
201738.7380 of 56733.0%★★☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankAlabama percentileRating
202516.1554 of 65114.9%★☆☆☆☆
202414.8567 of 65513.4%★☆☆☆☆
202312.8575 of 64911.4%★☆☆☆☆
202211.9614 of 6698.2%☆☆☆☆☆
202124.0496 of 66925.9%★☆☆☆☆
201937.5425 of 65034.6%★★☆☆☆
201831.5458 of 65029.5%★☆☆☆☆
201738.4415 of 63935.1%★★☆☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Male (2025)15th percentile+9 vs school
African American (2025)12th percentile+6 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)4th percentile~ school
Female (2025)2nd percentile-4 vs school
By subject vs Alabama (2024-2025) ?
English38%-27 vs state
Science18%-24 vs state
Mathematics12%-31 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Westhills Elementary School

Students at Westhills Elementary School are 85% African American, 12% Hispanic, 1% White, 1% Two or more races.

Westhills Elementary School ranks in the bottom 5.9% of Alabama elementary schools.

Students who attend Westhills Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Bessemer City Middle School
High : Bessemer City High School

In the 2024-25 school year, 277 students attended Westhills Elementary School.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Alabama State Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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