W S Neal High School

W S Neal High School in East Brewton, AL, serves 370 students in grades 9-12 within the Escambia County school district, where about 69.5% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch—a rate notably higher than nearby Flomaton High School (47.9%) and TR Miller High School (53.6%).

The school's biggest challenge is chronic absenteeism, with 32.9% of students missing significant school days—nearly triple the state average of 12% and far above TR Miller's 12.3%, despite both schools being just 3.45 miles apart. This attendance crisis has been climbing steadily over the past three years and likely contributes to academic struggles. In 2025-2026, math proficiency sits at just 11.83% (state: 27.21%), science at 19.35% (state: 36.17%), and English at 29.35% (state: 33.73%). While English proficiency jumped dramatically from 8.75% the prior year, science proficiency actually declined, showing inconsistent performance across subjects. The graduation rate of 89.1% is slightly above the district average but trails TR Miller's exceptional 97.5%.

There are some bright spots. The school ranks in the 57th percentile for serving economically disadvantaged students, suggesting it does relatively well when accounting for poverty. However, performance with special education students is a serious concern, ranking in the 7th percentile statewide. The school's overall state ranking has been volatile—from a high of 63rd in 2016-2017 to a low of 315th in 2021-2022, with recent years settling in the 226-276 range. The stark contrast with TR Miller, which achieves dramatically better outcomes with similar enrollment and per-student spending, suggests these challenges are addressable through focused efforts on attendance and instructional consistency.