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Cottonwood Elementary School

Q: Is Cottonwood Elementary School a good school?

Cottonwood Elementary School ranks 192 nd of 680 Alabama elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-6

192^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 680 Alabama Elementary Schools

Better than 72% of Alabama elementary schools

Summary

Cottonwood Elementary School is a public elementary school serving 508 students in grades PK-6 in Cottonwood, Alabama, which is part of the Houston County School District. The school consistently outperforms the state average in math and English/language arts proficiency, and it ranks highly for its support of special education students and students from low-income backgrounds.

One of Cottonwood Elementary's key strengths is its strong academic performance. The school's 3rd-grade English proficiency rate of 82.28% in 2024-2025 was significantly higher than the state average of 65.34%. Additionally, the school ranked in the top 25% of Alabama elementary schools for both its special education and low-income student subgroups. However, Cottonwood Elementary has seen a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 2.0% in 2022-2023 to 14.8% in 2023-2024, which is an area the school should focus on improving.

Compared to nearby schools, Cottonwood Elementary outperforms Webb Elementary and Ashford Elementary in the Houston County district, but it lags behind the highly-ranked Carver School of Mathematics, Science and Technology in the Dothan City district. The school also faces challenges with gender-based achievement gaps, with male students ranking in the top 25% of Alabama elementary schools and female students ranking in the bottom 50%.

502

Students ?

16.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

61%

Free/discounted lunch ?

663 Houston St
Cottonwood, AL 36320

(334) 691-2587

District: Houston County

Racial breakdown:

White:

77.3%

African American:

12.2%

Hispanic:

6.0%

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At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 66th percentile in 2023 → 72nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Alabama average (60% vs 50% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 6 percentile points since 2023

✓Above the Alabama median (72nd percentile)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school60%

District avg68%

Alabama avg50%

192^nd of 680

Alabama public elementary schools ?

Top 28%▲ up 5 pts since 2023

From top 34% (2023) to top 28% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Alabama Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

36^th of 135Houston 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
2025	70.4	192 of 680	71.8%	★★★★☆
2024	70.6	181 of 684	73.5%	★★★★☆
2023	65.2	229 of 680	66.3%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2022	60.1	134 of 426	68.5%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	59.1	262 of 649	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	62.0	228 of 650	64.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	63.1	229 of 645	64.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	55.3	286 of 656	56.4%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	75.0	121 of 660	81.7%	★★★★☆
2024	76.0	119 of 670	82.2%	★★★★☆
2023	69.1	158 of 623	74.6%	★★★★☆
2022	69.7	152 of 651	76.7%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	75.4	143 of 651	78.0%	★★★★☆
2024	74.8	146 of 655	77.7%	★★★★☆
2023	64.7	215 of 649	66.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	61.2	240 of 669	64.1%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	63.2	100 of 403	75.2%	★★★★☆
2024	77.6	50 of 395	87.3%	★★★★☆
2023	61.2	95 of 373	74.5%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	58.1	212 of 532	60.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.5	209 of 535	60.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.7	234 of 528	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	42.6	303 of 540	43.9%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)82nd percentile+10 vs school

Male (2025)78th percentile+6 vs school

Special Education (2025)75th percentile+3 vs school

African American (2022)69th percentile

White (2025)60th percentile-12 vs school

Female (2025)60th percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs Alabama (2024-2025) ?

English65%~ state avg

Mathematics60%+19 vs state

Science45%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Cottonwood Elementary School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				Summative Assessment Mathematics (2025)				Summative Assessment Science (2025)	Summative Assessment English (2025)				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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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
Cottonwood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	663 Houston St	Cottonwood	36320	Houston County	Houston County	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 691-2587	502	30	16.7	61.0%	388 (77.3%)	61 (12.2%)	30 (6.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (4.0%)	70.4	192^nd of 680 public elementary schools	71.8%		70.6	181^st of 684 public elementary schools	73.5%	11	70.9	65.0	49.1	53.5	45.0	82.3	65.0	69.8	42.4
Ashford Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	100 Barfield St	Ashford	36312	Houston County	Houston County	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 726-5960	668	37	18.2	65.6%	424 (63.5%)	156 (23.4%)	34 (5.1%)	5 (0.7%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (6.7%)	75.2	151^st of 680 public elementary schools	77.8%		73.7	166^th of 684 public elementary schools	75.7%	15	73.4	49.0	57.1		43.6	80.7	74.5	70.4		$9,417	$2,014	$7,389
Rehobeth Primary School	Public	PK, KG-3	5525 County Road 203	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Houston County	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(334) 677-5153	761	48	15.8	52.4%	516 (67.8%)	70 (9.2%)	110 (14.5%)	9 (1.2%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (7.1%)								(n/a)	66.8					83.8
Hidden Lake Primary School	Public	K-2	1475 Prevatt Rd	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 794-1491	476	28	17.0	83.4%	83 (17.4%)	313 (65.8%)	37 (7.8%)	6 (1.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (7.6%)								(n/a)										$9,711	$1,309	$8,164
Beverlye Intermediate School	Public	3-5	1025 S Beverlye Rd	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 794-1432	338	16	21.1	84.0%	38 (11.2%)	247 (73.1%)	29 (8.6%)	5 (1.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.3%)	7.8	659^th of 680 public elementary schools	3.1%		9.2	655^th of 684 public elementary schools	4.2%	4	19.4	8.7	5.7		7.3	41.4	22.8	42.0		$8,529	$728	$7,564
Carver School of Mathematics Science and Technology	Public	3-6	303 Rollins Avenue	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	No	(334) 794-1440	429	21	20.4	55.2%	193 (45.0%)	158 (36.8%)	37 (8.6%)	22 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (4.4%)	94	22^nd of 680 public elementary schools	96.8%		95.9	16^th of 684 public elementary schools	97.7%	6	70.3	72.0	62.1	78.4	70.0	89.1	87.0	98.1	96.1	$10,963	$756	$9,970
Selma Street Elementary School	Public	K-5	1501 W Selma St	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 794-1463	421	21	20.0	85.0%	42 (10.0%)	291 (69.1%)	58 (13.8%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.2%)	33	462^nd of 680 public elementary schools	32.1%		40.1	430^th of 684 public elementary schools	37.1%	32	28.0	30.9	38.0		30.9	42.9	56.4	56.0		$11,300	$2,679	$8,383
Faine Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1901 Stringer St	Dothan	36303	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 794-1455	326	22	14.8	84.4%	9 (2.8%)	296 (90.8%)	12 (3.7%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.5%)	5.7	670^th of 680 public elementary schools	1.5%		4	683^rd of 684 public elementary schools	0.1%	13	6.3	2.9	15.0		9.1	18.8	23.5	39.0		$10,275	$2,211	$7,834
Heard Elementary School	Public	K-5	201 Daniel Cir	Dothan	36301	Houston County	Dothan City	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 794-1471	389	21	18.5	65.8%	115 (29.6%)	209 (53.7%)	37 (9.5%)	10 (2.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (4.4%)	29.8	474^th of 680 public elementary schools	30.3%		29.4	492^nd of 684 public elementary schools	28.1%	18	24.2	28.8	22.8		25.4	61.3	50.0	57.9		$8,142	$635	$7,269
Webb Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	178 DePot St	Webb	36376	Houston County	Houston County	No	No	No	Yes	(334) 792-5744	419	29	14.5	72.8%	216 (51.6%)	161 (38.4%)	19 (4.5%)	4 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.3%)	83.2	95^th of 680 public elementary schools	86.0%		86.4	75^th of 684 public elementary schools	89.0%	20	62.9	69.1	68.6	54.6	66.0	74.6	85.2	74.5	63.6	$10,445	$2,504	$7,926

Frequently Asked Questions about Cottonwood Elementary School

What district is Cottonwood Elementary School in?

Houston County

How many students attend Cottonwood Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 502 students attended Cottonwood Elementary School.

Is Cottonwood Elementary School a good school?

Cottonwood Elementary School ranks 192^nd of 680 Alabama elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Cottonwood Elementary School?

Students at Cottonwood Elementary School are 77% White, 12% African American, 6% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races.

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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.