Summary:
Zip code 36477 is home to just one high school, Samson High School, a small rural school in Samson, Alabama, serving grades 9-12 with an enrollment of 183 students and part of the Geneva County district.
For parents considering this area, Samson High School offers a mixed picture of strengths and challenges. The school's most impressive achievements are its exceptional attendance and graduation outcomes. With a chronic absenteeism rate of just 4.9%—less than half the state average of 12.0%—and a graduation rate of 95.6% that exceeds the state's 91.5%, the school clearly keeps students engaged and on track. This is particularly notable given that 61.2% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, indicating a high-poverty population that still shows up and succeeds. The school also outperforms its district in math proficiency (25% vs. 26.74% in 2025-2026, though it was significantly ahead the prior year at 26.83% vs. 22.45%) and maintains a lower chronic absenteeism rate than the district's 5.5%.
However, academic proficiency in core subjects remains a concern. English proficiency is the weakest area, with just 23.4% of 11th graders proficient in 2025-2026, trailing the state average of 33.73% by more than 10 points. Science proficiency improved dramatically from 21.95% to 35.42% in one year, now slightly above the state average of 36.17%, but still well below the district's 45.35%. Math proficiency sits near the state average. The school's ranking has been volatile—swinging from 92nd (76th percentile) in 2023-2024 to 191st (49th percentile) in 2024-2025, then recovering to 172nd (55th percentile) in 2025-2026. With only about 45-50 students per grade, this variability is expected, and parents should focus on multi-year trends rather than single-year snapshots. Overall, Samson High School demonstrates strong community engagement and student retention, but families should be aware of the persistent English proficiency gap when evaluating academic preparation.
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