Summary:
Zip code 36078 is home to just one middle school, Southside Middle School, which serves grades 5 through 8 and enrolls 424 students in the Tallassee, AL area.
Southside Middle School is a steady, mid-tier performer within the Tallassee City district, consistently earning a 3-star rating over the past three years. Its ranking has been stable, peaking at 144th out of 443 schools in the 2025-2026 school year. Academically, the school shows a clear split: it is a standout in 8th-grade science, with 62.14% proficiency versus the state's 54.12%, and it generally outperforms state averages in English across most grades—particularly in 5th grade, where 71.72% of students are proficient. However, math remains a weaker area, with proficiency rates hovering around 30% in most grades, though it still beats the state average in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. One notable trend is the dramatic improvement in 8th-grade scores between the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, suggesting the previous cohort was an anomaly and the current group is exceptionally strong.
Perhaps the most impressive metric is the school's chronic absenteeism rate of just 4.6%—less than half the state average of 12.0% and well below its district's 8.5%. This is especially noteworthy given that 58% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, a demographic factor often associated with higher absenteeism. The school maintains a reasonable student-teacher ratio of 15.7 and spends $8,417 per student. Since it is the only middle school in the district, its test scores mirror the district's exactly. For parents, this school offers a stable, engaging environment with strong science and English programs, though math proficiency is an area to watch for improvement.
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