Summary:
Zip code 35180 in Warrior, Alabama, is served by two public schools within the Jefferson County school district, covering grades PK-8 with a combined enrollment of over 1,000 students.
Warrior Elementary School is the clear standout in this area, earning a 4-star rating and ranking in the 75th percentile statewide. The school has shown three consecutive years of improvement and outperforms both district and state averages in nearly every subject and grade level. Its 5th-grade English proficiency is exceptional at 91.21%, and its 5th-grade math proficiency (57.61%) far exceeds the state average of 39.06%. This success is notable given that the school serves a higher percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch (42.97%) and spends more per student ($10,462) than its middle school counterpart. In contrast, Corner Middle School has dropped to a 2-star rating, ranking in the 49th percentile. While the middle school maintains strong English scores and an impressive 8th-grade science proficiency rate of 61.82%, its math performance is a major concern—8th-grade math proficiency sits at just 13.64%, less than half the state average of 26.36%.
The most striking finding is the dramatic decline in math proficiency as students transition from elementary to middle school. Fifth graders at Warrior Elementary achieve 57.61% proficiency, but 5th graders at Corner Middle School drop to 45.92%, and by 7th and 8th grade, proficiency plummets to around 13%. This suggests a potential curriculum alignment or instructional challenge at the middle school level. Both schools share a similar challenge with chronic absenteeism (13.8% and 13.9%, both above the state average of 12.0%), and the middle school receives significantly less funding per student ($8,519 vs. $10,462). For parents, this zip code offers an excellent elementary option but a middle school with clear strengths in literacy and science that needs targeted support in mathematics.
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