Summary:
Zip code 36750, serving the Maplesville area of Alabama, contains 2 schools—Isabella High School and Maplesville High School—both classified as Alternative schools but functioning as comprehensive PK-12 institutions under the Chilton County district, which ranks 96th out of 139 districts in Alabama.
For parents comparing the two, Isabella High School (789 students) is the stronger academic performer in most subjects. It leads significantly in 5th-grade English (82.46% vs. 60.87% at Maplesville) and 11th-grade math (12.5% vs. 3.57%), while also having a lower economic disadvantage rate (44.74% free/reduced lunch vs. 49.66%). However, Maplesville High School (592 students) excels in graduation rate at 93.4%—above both the district (90.1%) and state (91.5%) averages—and has lower chronic absenteeism at 5.2% compared to Isabella's 7.1%, with both well below the state's 12.0%. Maplesville also spends considerably more per student ($10,143 vs. $8,326), yet this higher spending does not translate into better test scores, raising questions about resource efficiency.
The most striking finding is a dramatic academic decline as students advance. Both schools show strong early-grade English proficiency—Isabella's 3rd-grade English hits 80.3% and Maplesville's 77.14%, both well above state averages—but math proficiency collapses from roughly 40-45% in 3rd grade to just 7.04% (Isabella) and 2.13% (Maplesville) by 8th grade. By 11th grade, proficiency is critically low across all subjects: Maplesville's math proficiency is a mere 3.57%, and Isabella's English is 18.18% vs. the state's 33.73%. Year-over-year data also shows significant volatility, likely due to small cohort sizes. Despite these challenges, both schools foster an exemplary attendance culture, suggesting strong community support that could be leveraged for targeted math interventions and curriculum reform at the middle school level.
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