Summary:
Grady County, Georgia, is home to four elementary schools—Eastside Elementary School, Southside Elementary School, Shiver Elementary School, and Whigham Elementary School—serving grades PK-5 or PK-8 with enrollments between 543 and 735 students, all within the Grady County district, which ranks in the 54th percentile statewide.
For parents comparing schools, the standout is Shiver Elementary School, ranked 433rd in Georgia (64th percentile, 3 stars), with exceptional 4th grade math (79% proficient—29 points above the state average) and strong 8th grade science (43.7% vs. 19.8% district). Whigham Elementary School is the top-ranked school in the district (388th, 68th percentile, 3 stars) and shows the most consistent strength across subjects, exceeding state averages in most math and science tests. Eastside Elementary School made a dramatic 194-position jump in ranking (from 925th to 731st), nearly doubling 3rd grade math proficiency. Southside Elementary School is the lowest-ranked (958th, 21st percentile, 1 star) and the only school that declined, with particular struggles in 5th grade science (15.9% vs. 29.4% district).
Notably, the two PK-8 schools (Shiver and Whigham) outperform the PK-5 schools across nearly every subject. Spending does not predict success—Southside spends the most per student ($13,522) yet ranks lowest, while Shiver spends the least ($11,652) and performs well. Chronic absenteeism is counterintuitively higher at the top-performing schools (17.9% at Shiver, 17.7% at Whigham) than at Southside (14.4%). All schools show a notable drop in 5th grade math proficiency compared to 3rd and 4th grades, suggesting a challenging transition point. Eastside and Southside serve 100% free/reduced lunch populations, yet Shiver achieves strong results with 92% poverty, showing that high performance is possible regardless of socioeconomic factors.
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