Best Public Schools in Zip Code 35226

Zip code 35226 in Hoover, AL is served by the Hoover City school district, which is ranked #13 out of 139 districts in Alabama, and contains 6 schools—5 elementary schools and 1 middle school—with a total enrollment of 3,590 students, though there are no high schools within this zip code.

Families in this area have access to several exceptionally strong elementary options, with Bluff Park Elementary School leading the pack as the top performer in the zip code, ranked #15 in the state with 5-star ratings and impressive proficiency rates of 83.6% in Math and 89.8% in English. Deer Valley Elementary School is the most improved, jumping 11 percentage points in 3rd grade Math and boasting the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (3.6%) and lowest free/reduced lunch rate (15.4%) in the area. Shades Mountain Elementary School offers the smallest class sizes with a 12.1:1 student-teacher ratio and the highest per-student spending at $14,266, though it ranks slightly below the top two. The middle school option, Ira F Simmons Middle School, shows a typical middle school dip in Math proficiency (52.7%) but maintains strong English scores (75.9%). Gwin Elementary School and Green Valley Elementary School are solid but lower-performing options, with Green Valley showing the highest poverty rate (51.9% free/reduced lunch) and a concerning decline in state ranking from #93 to #153.

All schools in this zip code significantly outperform state averages, particularly in English where even the lowest performer exceeds state proficiency by 15-25 percentage points. Chronic absenteeism is remarkably low across the board (3.6% to 6.7%, roughly half the state average of 12%), and class sizes are favorable at 12.1:1 to 14.7:1. However, there is a clear performance gap between schools serving more affluent populations (Deer Valley, Bluff Park) and those with higher poverty rates (Green Valley, Gwin), and this gap persists despite higher per-student spending at the latter schools. Notably, the top-performing schools are improving their state rankings while the lower-performing ones are declining, suggesting a widening divergence within the zip code. For parents, the specific school zone matters significantly, but overall this area offers consistently strong educational options with excellent attendance, favorable class sizes, and academic performance that far exceeds state norms.