Summary:
Zip code 36602 is served by a single school, Barton Academy For Advanced World Studies, a specialized middle school for grades 6-9 with 311 students in the Mobile County district.
For parents, this is an exceptional school. Barton Academy ranks #3 out of 443 Alabama middle schools, earning a 5-star rating and placing in the 99th percentile statewide. It has been a top-10 school for three consecutive years. Academic proficiency is outstanding across every subject and grade level. In 6th grade, 100% of students are proficient in English and 75.79% in math, compared to state averages of 56.77% and 35.22% respectively. The school outperforms the state by 36-43 percentage points in most subjects. Even its relative weak spot—7th grade math at 48.24% proficiency—is nearly double the state average of 24.46%. The school also has an extraordinarily low chronic absenteeism rate of just 1.2%, versus 12% statewide, and only 20.58% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, indicating a more affluent student body.
This is clearly a magnet-style program that draws motivated families from across the district. The contrast with the broader Mobile County district is stark—the district ranks in the 33rd percentile statewide, yet Barton Academy sits in the top 1%. In 6th grade English, the school's 100% proficiency dwarfs the district's 50.65%. The school's unique 6-9 grade structure is notable, though no test data is reported for 9th graders. While the 7th grade math scores dipped this year (from 63.41% to 48.24%), the school remains elite. Parents should understand this is an outlier school—highly selective, with exceptional results—but its success also highlights significant educational disparities within Mobile County.
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