Best Public Schools in Emerson, GA

The city of Emerson, Georgia, is served by two schools within the Bartow County school district, which holds a 3-star rating and ranks 72nd out of 201 districts statewide. Red Top Middle School (grades 6-8, 569 students) and Emerson Elementary School (grades PK-5, 385 students) together serve roughly 954 students, with both schools having high economic disadvantage rates (83.5% and 77.9% free/reduced lunch, respectively) and above-average per-student spending ($17,824 and $20,203).

These two schools are moving in opposite directions. Red Top Middle School shows a remarkable strength in advanced coursework: its Algebra I proficiency rate of 91.3% is 37 points above the district average and 43 points above the state, and its 8th graders taking high school Physical Science scored 55.5% proficient. However, the same school struggles with grade-level coursework—only 12.6% of 8th graders are proficient in standard science, and 34.6% in 8th grade math, both far below district and state averages. In contrast, Emerson Elementary School has experienced a dramatic decline, dropping 248 places in state rankings to the 27th percentile (1-star rating). The most alarming trend is a "5th grade cliff": math proficiency fell from 33.9% to 16.7% and science from 35.6% to 15.2% in just one year, while 3rd and 4th grade scores remain near state averages, suggesting a cohort-specific issue rather than a school-wide problem.

Chronic absenteeism tells a similar story of disparity: Red Top Middle (14.8%) is better than both district (15.8%) and state (17.7%) averages, while Emerson Elementary (18.6%) is worse than both. Notably, Emerson Elementary spends over $20,000 per student—nearly double the national average—yet holds a 1-star rating, raising questions about resource effectiveness. English Language Arts scores are not included in this release (they arrive in December), but the most recent data shows both schools below state averages in most grades. For parents, the key takeaway is that Red Top Middle excels with accelerated students but struggles with grade-level instruction, while Emerson Elementary faces a sudden, urgent challenge in its 5th grade that warrants immediate investigation.