Summary:
Zip code 35209 in Homewood, Alabama, is served by a single middle school, Homewood Middle School, which enrolls roughly 1,000 students in grades 6 through 8 and operates within the highly rated Homewood City district.
Homewood Middle School is an elite performer, ranking #12 out of 443 Alabama middle schools for the 2025-2026 school year (97th percentile) with a 5-star rating, and it has never fallen below the 97th percentile in three years of ranking data. Academically, the school far exceeds state averages in every subject and grade level. For example, 8th-grade science proficiency is 86.63% versus the state's 54.12%, and 7th-grade math proficiency is 67.16% versus the state's 24.46%. The school's greatest relative strength is mathematics, where the gap over the state exceeds 35 points in every grade. Year-over-year, 8th-grade science improved dramatically by 13.25 points, and 7th-grade math rose by 9.89 points. However, 6th-grade English dropped by 9.79 points, and math proficiency declines as students advance (from 73.91% in 6th grade to 61.92% in 8th grade), suggesting areas for targeted support.
Beyond test scores, the school benefits from a chronic absenteeism rate of just 4.5%—far below the state's 12.0%—and a favorable student-to-teacher ratio of 14.4:1. About 28.3% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, and per-student spending is $11,292. The school's stable top-3% ranking over multiple years indicates sustained excellence rather than a one-year anomaly. For parents, this is a school with exceptional academic outcomes, strong attendance, and solid institutional support, though the declining math scores in upper grades and the recent 6th-grade English dip are worth monitoring.
Thank you for your feedback!