Summary:
Zip code 35962 in Crossville, Alabama, is served by a single elementary school, Crossville Elementary School, which enrolls 658 students in grades K-3 within the DeKalb County school district.
For parents considering this school, the most important takeaway is that Crossville Elementary School faces significant academic challenges, particularly in English language arts. In the most recent testing year, only 28.3% of 3rd graders were proficient in English, compared to 64.75% statewide—a gap of more than 36 percentage points. Math proficiency also lags, with 25.63% of students proficient versus 44.89% statewide. This represents a sharp decline from the prior year, when English proficiency was 38.01%, and math was 27.12%. The school has historically ranked in the bottom 7-11% of Alabama elementary schools, indicating long-standing systemic struggles rather than a recent issue. The school serves a predominantly low-income population, with 87.39% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch, and maintains a student-teacher ratio of 15.3:1.
On a more positive note, chronic absenteeism at Crossville Elementary School is 9.1%, which is actually better than both the district (10.6%) and state (12.0%) averages, suggesting strong family engagement despite economic hardships. Per-student spending is approximately $10,892, which appears reasonable, yet outcomes remain low—raising questions about how effectively resources are being used. The district itself is ranked 74th out of 139 in Alabama, and the school underperforms its own district by 28 points in English, indicating school-specific factors are at play. Given that 3rd grade is a critical "learning to read" to "reading to learn" transition year, the low English proficiency is an urgent concern. Parents should expect that their child may need additional literacy support and should inquire about intervention programs when enrolling.
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