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Matthews Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-4

615^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 686 Alabama Elementary Schools

Better than 10% of Alabama elementary schools

Summary

Matthews Elementary School in Northport, AL, serves 401 students from Pre-K through 4th grade within the Tuscaloosa County school district, where a large majority of families (about 87%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Matthews Elementary is a school showing steady, gradual improvement despite facing significant challenges. The school currently holds a 1-star rating and ranks in the bottom 10% of Alabama elementary schools, though this is a meaningful step up from its 0-star rating and 5th percentile ranking just a few years ago. One of the most encouraging trends is attendance: chronic absenteeism has dropped dramatically from 22.1% in 2021-2022 to 12.2% in 2024-2025, which now matches the district average. Academically, students perform notably better in English Language Arts than in math—about 32% of 3rd graders are proficient in reading compared to about 15% in math. The school also shows particular strength in serving its African American students, who rank in the 29th percentile statewide, significantly higher than the school's overall ranking. However, Hispanic students and English Language Learners face greater challenges and may benefit from additional support.

When comparing Matthews to nearby schools, the differences largely reflect the socioeconomic makeup of the neighborhoods served. Just 1.75 miles away, FaucettVestavia Elementary serves a much more affluent population (47% free/reduced lunch) and achieves dramatically higher test scores—61% math proficiency versus 15% at Matthews. A more apples-to-apples comparison is Crestmont Elementary, which serves a similar demographic profile (75% free/reduced lunch) and shows very similar academic results. Notably, Matthews spends less per student ($9,484) than nearby schools like Crestmont ($10,253) or University Place Elementary ($11,854), yet achieves comparable outcomes—suggesting efficient use of resources. For parents, this is a school that faces real obstacles but is clearly moving in the right direction, with improving attendance and modest academic gains that point to effective, targeted interventions taking hold.

401

Students ?

15.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,484

Per pupil spending ?

86.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1225 Rice Mine Road
Northport, AL 35476

(205) 342-2654

District: Tuscaloosa County

Students who attend Matthews Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	CollinsRiverside Middle School
High:	Sipsey Valley High School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

57.6%

Hispanic:

34.7%

White:

6.2%

See top rated Alabama elementary schools

Compare Matthews Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 5th percentile in 2016 → 10th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 5 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Alabama average (26% vs 52% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!Science scores 29 pts below the Alabama average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school26%

District avg43%

Alabama avg52%

615^th of 686

Alabama public elementary schools ?

Bottom 10%▲ up 6 pts since 2016

From bottom 5% (2016) to bottom 10% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Alabama Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

14^th of 17Elementary Schools in the Tuscaloosa County

90^th of 140Tuscaloosa 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	12.8	615 of 686	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.5	604 of 680	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.7	602 of 684	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.4	583 of 680	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.6	564 of 687	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.7	600 of 692	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	8.4	649 of 681	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.9	653 of 680	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	6.4	675 of 688	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	8.5	659 of 691	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	10.4	649 of 691	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	25.1	548 of 695	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	41.0	509 of 696	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	46.9	452 of 696	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	31.3	568 of 709	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	48.8	432 of 704	38.6%	★★☆☆☆
2009	55.4	332 of 696	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2008	39.0	489 of 698	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2007	32.2	554 of 698	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	46.3	400 of 689	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2005	45.7	413 of 688	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2004	58.1	263 of 623	57.8%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	31.2	305 of 428	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	27.2	337 of 427	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.7	352 of 420	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.7	340 of 427	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.1	297 of 426	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	22.8	364 of 426	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.1	389 of 426	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.1	380 of 423	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	11.3	331 of 336	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	28.6	116 of 143	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	32.1	107 of 142	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	37.2	84 of 131	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.4	89 of 123	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	39.0	67 of 110	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	38.1	62 of 100	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	32.4	57 of 74	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.7	50 of 65	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	29.1	20 of 25	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	15.9	558 of 651	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.4	587 of 649	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.4	584 of 650	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.0	572 of 645	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.8	574 of 656	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.5	622 of 656	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.1	594 of 646	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.8	604 of 640	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	8.8	617 of 639	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	26.4	73 of 90	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	22.1	176 of 206	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.5	146 of 196	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.4	135 of 184	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	35.7	122 of 175	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.8	121 of 164	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.5	141 of 152	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.2	133 of 140	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	23.2	113 of 130	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	16.5	595 of 667	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	17.5	585 of 660	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.9	584 of 670	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.8	531 of 623	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.8	533 of 651	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	15.8	587 of 653	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.9	610 of 649	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.5	635 of 651	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	7.0	558 of 567	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2026	12.0	601 of 659	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.1	567 of 651	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.1	564 of 655	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.9	548 of 649	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.6	531 of 669	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.5	541 of 669	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	8.0	628 of 650	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.8	633 of 650	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	6.5	632 of 639	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2025	22.8	48 of 53	9.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	34.4	39 of 59	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.5	37 of 57	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.7	42 of 65	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.5	48 of 63	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.5	49 of 58	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Alabama percentile	Rating
2021	23.1	339 of 398	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.8	362 of 392	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.4	322 of 344	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	17.7	251 of 280	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)29th percentile+18 vs school

Hispanic (2026)19th percentile+9 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)19th percentile+9 vs school

Special Education (2021)15th percentile~ school

Female (2026)14th percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)11th percentile~ school

Native American (2025)9th percentile~ school

Male (2026)9th percentile~ school

By subject vs Alabama (2025-2026) ?

English36%-26 vs state

Science21%-29 vs state

Mathematics19%-24 vs state

1.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, July 26, 2016

My child has had some of the WORST experiences at this school. Not only are there constant bullying by students, even some of the teachers possess this kind of behavior as well. You believe that when you send your child to school, the school will show better professionalism in what they do. The school rating is exact ( 2 out of 10 ). The school's progress has dropped tremendously. And the academics does not even land on the chart in learning. But yet, this school is in operation. 97% of the students that attend there is barley learning. Because 95% of the teachers are not teaching anything valuable to the students. The last high scoring the school had was of 2010. And yet, it is dropping persistently. My child has lost an interest of attending school, because the the actions and behaviors of some students, and sadly some teachers as well. The school's bathrooms are unsanitary, the dining room tables are constantly dirty during lunch hours. And a lot of the school's staff is VERY impolite. The best thing that should be done, is having the State take over, and a questionnaire be sent home to each parent expressing there concerns about this school. And hoping for a BETTER change for the students. And teaching the teachers how to be better educators. There are parents who wants to be very involved with their child's learning. But the school's staff makes it very hard for the parents to have that advantage to do so. This school is suppose to have an open-door policy, but if the school's director feels that they don't want you to have that advantage to do so, they will change the rules, becoming very unorthodox in their behavior. I would advise ANY and ALL parents to think twice before allowing your child, or children to attend here. Your child will have a greater chance loosing self hope and interest after being at this school. With Great Regards. Disappointed Parent. Close Quote

Schools Near Matthews 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 Science 4th Grade	Summative Assessment English 3rd Grade	Summative Assessment English 4th Grade	Summative Assessment English 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Matthews Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	1225 Rice Mine Road	Northport	35476	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa County	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 342-2654	401	26	15.2	86.8%	25 (6.2%)	231 (57.6%)	139 (34.7%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	12.8	615^th of 686 public elementary schools	10.3%		13.5	604^th of 680 public elementary schools	11.2%	11	14.7	24.0		21.3	32.4	40.0		$9,484	$2,129	$7,332
Crestmont Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	2400 34th Ave	Northport	35476	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa County	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 342-2695	268	20	13.4	74.6%	32 (11.9%)	141 (52.6%)	85 (31.7%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)	12.7	618^th of 686 public elementary schools	9.9%		19.1	550^th of 680 public elementary schools	19.1%	68	18.5	22.4		22.4	38.5	34.5		$10,253	$2,088	$8,140
Central Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1510 Dinah Washington Ave	Tuscaloosa	35401	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 759-3570	291	20	14.4	78.7%	1 (0.3%)	234 (80.4%)	50 (17.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.7%)	31.5	481^st of 686 public elementary schools	29.9%		26.5	501^st of 680 public elementary schools	26.3%	20	37.0	35.7	38.9	14.3	53.7	43.9	55.6	$11,176	$2,407	$8,750
FaucettVestavia Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	1150 Vestavia Circle	Northport	35473	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa County	No	No	No	No	(205) 342-2646	343	23	14.9	46.9%	194 (56.6%)	100 (29.2%)	18 (5.2%)	17 (5.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (4.1%)	84.4	94^th of 686 public elementary schools	86.3%		71.8	179^th of 680 public elementary schools	73.7%	85	61.4	58.0		68.0	81.5	86.0		$8,445	$948	$7,473
Martin L King Junior Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2430 Martin L King Jr Blvd	Tuscaloosa	35401	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 759-3619	467	28	16.6	79.2%	1 (0.2%)	413 (88.4%)	49 (10.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.6%)	23.2	531^st of 686 public elementary schools	22.6%		19.8	544^th of 680 public elementary schools	20.0%	13	25.7	27.1	29.8	13.6	44.3	49.2	54.4	$12,095	$2,487	$9,589
University Place Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2000 First Avenue	Tuscaloosa	35401	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 759-3664	570	38	15.0	69.3%	24 (4.2%)	448 (78.6%)	63 (11.1%)	22 (3.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.1%)	42.2	412^th of 686 public elementary schools	39.9%		42.6	405^th of 680 public elementary schools	40.4%	7	49.2	35.4	38.8	25.3	61.5	54.4	59.7	$11,854	$1,683	$10,153
Oakdale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	5001 25th Street	Tuscaloosa	35401	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 759-3626	292	22	13.4	80.5%	3 (1.0%)	264 (90.4%)	16 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.4%)	28.3	497^th of 686 public elementary schools	27.6%		18.1	559^th of 680 public elementary schools	17.8%	62	42.5	21.1	20.9	10.5	72.5	42.1	48.8	$12,270	$2,250	$10,000
Tuscaloosa Magnet School Elementary	Public, Magnet	1-5	315 Mcfarland Blvd E	Tuscaloosa	35404	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	Yes	No	No	(205) 759-3655	324	22	15.0	27.8%	132 (40.7%)	145 (44.8%)	18 (5.6%)	20 (6.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.5%)	91.6	41^st of 686 public elementary schools	94.0%		94.1	20^th of 680 public elementary schools	97.1%	21	55.7	78.3	78.7	71.7	93.4	90.0	98.4	$11,429	$974	$10,435
Verner Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2701 Northridge Rd	Tuscaloosa	35406	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa City	No	No	No	No	(205) 759-3667	608	34	17.9	19.7%	425 (69.9%)	123 (20.2%)	29 (4.8%)	18 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (2.1%)	85	90^th of 686 public elementary schools	86.9%		86.3	76^th of 680 public elementary schools	88.8%	14	65.7	66.0	69.9	60.2	86.7	71.8	85.0	$10,118	$575	$9,524
Flatwoods Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	3800 66th Ave	Northport	35473	Tuscaloosa County	Tuscaloosa County	No	No	No	Yes	(205) 342-2648	459	32	14.3	68.6%	90 (19.6%)	198 (43.1%)	153 (33.3%)	6 (1.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.4%)	25.4	518^th of 686 public elementary schools	24.5%		28.6	485^th of 680 public elementary schools	28.7%	33	32.8	23.2		30.0	60.9	34.3		$9,480	$1,998	$7,458

Frequently Asked Questions about Matthews Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of Matthews Elementary School?

Students at Matthews Elementary School are 58% African American, 35% Hispanic, 6% White.

What district is Matthews Elementary School in?

Tuscaloosa County

Is Matthews Elementary School a good school?

Matthews Elementary School ranks in the bottom 10.3% of Alabama elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of Matthews Elementary School attend?

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

Middle : CollinsRiverside Middle School
High : Sipsey Valley High School

How many students attend Matthews Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 401 students attended Matthews Elementary School.

Rate Matthews Elementary School!

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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.