Summary:
Schools in zip code 35209, covering the Homewood and Birmingham areas of Alabama, include seven schools serving elementary through high school grades, with a mix of traditional public schools and alternative options. The standout schools here are the five belonging to the Homewood City district, which is ranked 6th out of 139 districts in the state and holds a 5-star rating, creating a clear performance gap compared to the two other schools in the area.
For parents, the top choices are clear. Shades Cahaba Elementary School leads the elementary options with a 5-star rating, ranked 13th in the state, and posts exceptional 5th-grade scores (82% math, 96.6% English). Edgewood Elementary School is nearly as strong, ranked 16th, with the lowest chronic absenteeism rate in the zip code at 2.8% and the highest single test score—98.25% in 5th-grade English. Hall Kent Elementary School lags behind its peers, with lower test scores despite higher per-student spending. At the secondary level, Homewood High School is the standout, ranked 5th in the state with a 93.7% graduation rate and 11th-grade proficiency rates (73% English, 64% math/science) that more than double state averages. Homewood Middle School also performs well, consistently scoring 30-40 points above state averages.
The two non-Homewood schools present a stark contrast. Magic City Acceptance Academy has a 27.6% chronic absenteeism rate and 11th-grade math proficiency of just 19.1%, while Jefferson County Virtual School shows 0% absenteeism (likely a virtual-school artifact) but only 15.9% math proficiency. Notably, higher spending doesn't guarantee better results—Shades Cahaba outperforms Hall Kent despite spending less per student, suggesting teaching quality and culture matter more than raw dollars.
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