Summary:
Zip code 35080 is home to exactly one high school, Helena High School, which serves grades 9-12 and is part of the highly-rated Shelby County school district.
For parents considering this area, Helena High School is a standout performer. It currently ranks 21st out of 380 Alabama high schools, placing it in the top 6% statewide with a 5-star rating. The school's academic proficiency rates are impressive across the board: 46.34% in math, 57.32% in science, and 51.68% in English, all significantly outpacing both district and state averages by 18 to 21 percentage points. Science is a particular strength, with proficiency more than 21 points above the state average. The graduation rate is also strong at 95.4%, exceeding both the district (94.5%) and state (91.5%) figures. Perhaps most notably, the school showed remarkable year-over-year improvement, with proficiency gains of roughly 10 to 12 percentage points in every subject between the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years.
While the academic picture is overwhelmingly positive, there are a few areas worth noting. Chronic absenteeism sits at 14.6%, which is higher than both the district (11.0%) and state (12.0%) averages—a potential concern despite the strong test scores. The student-teacher ratio is 17.6:1, and about 26% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, indicating a relatively affluent student body. The school's state ranking has shown some year-to-year volatility, moving from 32nd to 49th and back to 21st over three years, but the overall trajectory is strongly upward. Within the already high-performing Shelby County district, Helena High School clearly stands out as a top-tier institution delivering excellent academic outcomes.
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