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Leighton Elementary School

Q: Is Leighton Elementary School a good school?

Leighton Elementary School ranks 459 th of 686 Alabama elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

459^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 686 Alabama Elementary Schools

Better than 33% of Alabama elementary schools

Summary

Leighton Elementary School serves approximately 355 students from Pre-K through 6th grade in the rural community of Leighton, Alabama, within the Colbert County school district. The school has a 2-star rating and ranks in the 33rd percentile statewide, with 61.4% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch—a significant increase from 48% just two years ago. The student-teacher ratio of 13.8:1 is favorable, and per-student spending of $12,176 is higher than several comparable schools in the region.

One of the most encouraging trends is the dramatic reduction in chronic absenteeism, which has dropped from 25.8% in 2021-2022 to 18.5% in 2024-2025—a 28% improvement, though still above the state average of 12.0%. The school also shows notable strength in early literacy, with 71.4% of 3rd graders proficient in English, exceeding both district and state averages. Additionally, special education students have performed well, ranking in the 70th percentile statewide in 2023-2024, though this has since declined to the 46th percentile. However, a striking gender disparity exists, with male students consistently outperforming female students by 8-12 percentile points each year—an unusual pattern that may warrant investigation into instructional practices.

The most concerning pattern is the sharp decline in mathematics proficiency as students advance through grade levels. In 2025-2026, 48.6% of 3rd graders were proficient in math, but this drops to just 20.9% by 5th grade—a 57% decline. This contrasts sharply with Hatton Elementary, located just 4.67 miles away in the same district, where 5th grade math proficiency reaches 82.1% despite serving a similar demographic population. Hatton also outperforms Leighton in overall ranking (69th percentile vs. 33rd) and has lower chronic absenteeism (13.3% vs. 18.5%). This comparison suggests the performance gap is not driven by student demographics but by school-level practices and instructional quality. Science proficiency also lags, with only 37.8% of 4th graders proficient compared to 50.2% statewide. While the school's 3rd grade English performance is a genuine bright spot, the declining trajectory across grade levels and the growing population of economically disadvantaged students present significant challenges that warrant attention from school leadership.

355

Students ?

13.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,176

Per pupil spending ?

61.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8100 Old Highway 20
Leighton, AL 35646

(256) 446-8351

District: Colbert County

Students who attend Leighton Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Colbert County High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

60.8%

African American:

17.7%

Hispanic:

10.7%

See top rated Alabama elementary schools

Compare Leighton Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 38th percentile in 2016 → 33rd in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Alabama average (43% vs 53% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 5 percentile points since 2016

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school43%

District avg57%

Alabama avg53%

459^th of 686

Alabama public elementary schools ?

Bottom 33%▼ down 5 pts since 2016

From bottom 38% (2016) to bottom 33% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Alabama Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 5Elementary Schools in the Colbert County

72^nd of 139Colbert County 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	35.7	459 of 686	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	39.0	433 of 680	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.4	421 of 684	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	44.8	383 of 680	43.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	21.3	536 of 687	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.7	520 of 692	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.1	567 of 681	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	36.5	449 of 680	34.0%	★★☆☆☆
2017	40.2	434 of 688	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2016	39.7	430 of 691	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2015	39.6	426 of 691	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2014	45.6	393 of 695	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	58.9	334 of 696	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	64.8	261 of 696	62.5%	★★★☆☆
2011	61.2	309 of 709	56.4%	★★★☆☆
2010	68.4	202 of 704	71.3%	★★★★☆
2009	48.9	406 of 696	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2008	57.2	304 of 698	56.4%	★★★☆☆
2007	41.6	467 of 698	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2006	37.1	495 of 689	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	37.2	497 of 688	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	41.0	402 of 623	35.5%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2019	16.8	404 of 426	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	30.3	472 of 652	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	33.6	441 of 649	32.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.6	418 of 650	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.2	417 of 645	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	22.4	515 of 656	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.7	516 of 656	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.8	543 of 646	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.9	397 of 640	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2017	40.5	399 of 639	37.6%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	34.5	467 of 668	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	45.9	374 of 660	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	51.9	335 of 670	50.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	65.2	192 of 623	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	28.7	488 of 651	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.7	508 of 653	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.0	571 of 649	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.5	447 of 651	31.3%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	45.8	372 of 660	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	46.3	363 of 651	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.9	394 of 655	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	53.6	303 of 649	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	22.5	518 of 669	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	27.6	480 of 669	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.0	528 of 650	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	32.7	454 of 650	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2017	38.8	410 of 639	35.8%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	41.7	218 of 403	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	47.7	184 of 403	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	60.6	120 of 395	69.6%	★★★★☆
2023	50.8	148 of 373	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	30.7	249 of 345	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	35.1	270 of 398	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	18.6	363 of 392	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	29.6	250 of 344	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	20.4	445 of 500	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.1	452 of 532	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.0	420 of 535	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.2	392 of 528	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	11.6	512 of 540	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.6	501 of 539	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.3	512 of 529	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	17.9	468 of 508	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	32.6	260 of 369	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Special Education (2026)46th percentile+13 vs school

Male (2026)44th percentile+11 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)30th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2026)28th percentile-5 vs school

White (2026)11th percentile-22 vs school

African American (2019)5th percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs Alabama (2025-2026) ?

English55%-10 vs state

Science38%-12 vs state

Mathematics33%-9 vs state

★

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Schools Near Leighton Elementary School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				Summative Assessment Mathematics (2026)				Summative Assessment Science (2026)	Summative Assessment English (2026)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Summative Assessment Mathematics 3rd Grade	Summative Assessment Mathematics 4th Grade	Summative Assessment Mathematics 5th Grade	Summative Assessment Mathematics 6th Grade	Summative Assessment Science 4th Grade	Summative Assessment English 3rd Grade	Summative Assessment English 4th Grade	Summative Assessment English 5th Grade	Summative Assessment English 6th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Leighton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	8100 Old Highway 20	Leighton	35646	Colbert County	Colbert County	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 446-8351	355	26	13.8	61.4%	216 (60.8%)	63 (17.7%)	38 (10.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.8%)	2 (0.6%)	33 (9.3%)	35.7	459^th of 686 public elementary schools	33.1%		39	433^rd of 680 public elementary schools	36.3%	26	48.6	29.7	20.9		37.8	71.4	43.2	48.8		$12,176	$2,081	$10,095
Hatton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2130 Hatton School Rd	Leighton	35646	Colbert County	Colbert County	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 446-5679	236	18	13.2	65.3%	156 (66.1%)	48 (20.3%)	8 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (9.7%)	68	214^th of 686 public elementary schools	68.8%		67.6	215^th of 680 public elementary schools	68.4%	1	70.0	35.5	82.1		38.7	72.5	61.3	85.7		$13,061	$1,843	$11,218
Hazlewood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	334 Hazelwood St	Town Creek	35672	Lawrence County	Lawrence County	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 685-4020	221	13	17.0	85.1%	90 (40.7%)	108 (48.9%)	7 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (5.9%)	17.4	575^th of 686 public elementary schools	16.2%		17.3	566^th of 680 public elementary schools	16.8%	9	16.7	11.5	25.0	24.0	24.0	37.5	30.8	50.0	44.0	$10,991	$2,077	$8,898
Webster Elementary School	Public	1-2	200 Webster Ave	Muscle Shoals	35661	Colbert County	Muscle Shoals City	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 389-2650	234	14	16.4	40.6%	149 (63.7%)	46 (19.7%)	15 (6.4%)	6 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.7%)								(n/a)										$13,378	$1,268	$12,075
Howell Graves Preschool	Public	PK-K	3201 Alabama Ave	Muscle Shoals	35661	Colbert County	Muscle Shoals City	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 389-2630	356	19	18.7	19.9%	238 (66.9%)	53 (14.9%)	28 (7.9%)	13 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (6.7%)								(n/a)										$11,965	$1,916	$10,013
McBride Elementary School	Public	3-5	1400 Avalon Ave	Muscle Shoals	35661	Colbert County	Muscle Shoals City	No	No	No	No	(256) 389-2610	647	37	17.3	34.2%	447 (69.1%)	87 (13.4%)	55 (8.5%)	22 (3.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (5.4%)	88.2	66^th of 686 public elementary schools	90.4%		89	55^th of 680 public elementary schools	91.9%	11	84.9	63.6	62.2		71.9	88.1	72.4	86.0		$8,031	$197	$7,800
Highland Park Elementary School	Public	1-2	714 Elmhurst St	Muscle Shoals	35661	Colbert County	Muscle Shoals City	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 389-2620	236	13	17.8	44.9%	151 (64.0%)	35 (14.8%)	26 (11.0%)	5 (2.1%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.6%)								(n/a)										$11,919	$2,319	$9,565
G W Trenholm Primary School	Public	PK, KG-2	601 Joe Wheeler Hwy	Tuscumbia	35674	Colbert County	Tuscumbia City	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 389-2940	413	28	14.5	55.9%	247 (59.8%)	115 (27.8%)	14 (3.4%)	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (7.3%)								(n/a)										$9,760	$1,698	$8,038
Colbert Heights Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1551 Sunset Dr	Tuscumbia	35674	Colbert County	Colbert County	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 381-6132	486	32	15.1	56.0%	429 (88.3%)	9 (1.9%)	25 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (4.7%)	55.5	312^th of 686 public elementary schools	54.5%		50.2	355^th of 680 public elementary schools	47.8%	43	48.2	44.3	38.5		49.2	63.6	50.8	80.0		$8,666	$1,990	$6,676
Weeden Elementary School	Public	K-6	400 Baldwin St	Florence	35630	Lauderdale County	Florence City	No	No	No	Yes	(256) 768-2900	477	32	15.1	84.3%	96 (20.1%)	144 (30.2%)	190 (39.8%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (9.4%)	56.3	302^nd of 686 public elementary schools	56.0%		50.6	351^st of 680 public elementary schools	48.4%	49	62.0	46.3	46.0	50.8	27.9	61.1	55.9	61.3	63.6	$14,455	$2,668	$11,763

Frequently Asked Questions about Leighton Elementary School

What schools do graduates of Leighton Elementary School attend?

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

High : Colbert County High School

What is the racial makeup of Leighton Elementary School?

Students at Leighton Elementary School are 61% White, 18% African American, 11% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races.

How many students attend Leighton Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 355 students attended Leighton Elementary School.

Is Leighton Elementary School a good school?

Leighton Elementary School ranks 459^th of 686 Alabama elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Leighton Elementary School in?

Colbert County

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Latest Alabama data All new data »

2025–26 Summative Assessment scoresAug 14, 2026

2024–25 attendance data & graduation ratesDec 27, 2025

2024–25 Summative Assessment scoresAug 14, 2025

2021–22 through 2023–24 attendance data & graduation ratesDec 2, 2024

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.