Summary:
Treutlen County is served by two schools—Treutlen Elementary School (PK-5) and Treutlen Middle/High School (6-12)—together educating about 1,020 students in Soperton, Georgia, with both schools serving very high-poverty populations (100% and 98.27% free/reduced lunch eligibility, respectively).
The clear standout is Treutlen Elementary School, which has climbed over 100 spots in state rankings in a single year to reach the 75th percentile and earn a 4-star rating—the district’s highest. Its math program is exceptional: 3rd-grade math proficiency hit 70.5% (22 points above the state), and the school outperforms the state in every elementary math grade tested. It also keeps chronic absenteeism below the state average at 16.4%, a notable feat given its poverty level. In contrast, Treutlen Middle/High School sits at the 50th percentile with a 3-star rating, showing steady but modest improvement. Its strengths include U.S. History (45.6% vs. 38.5% state) and a 12.6-point jump in Algebra I, but it struggles with Biology (26.2%, 21 points below state), 8th-grade math (30.7%, down 14.8 points year-over-year), and a 78.4% graduation rate that trails the state by nearly 9 points.
The most striking pattern is the elementary-to-middle school drop-off: students leave elementary school outperforming the state in math by 9-22 points, then fall behind by 1.5-15.6 points in middle school. Chronic absenteeism also jumps from 16.4% at the elementary to 24.9% at the secondary level—7 points above the state—likely contributing to the secondary school’s volatile scores and graduation gap. Both schools spend generously ($16,349 and $15,280 per student) with favorable student-teacher ratios, yet the secondary school struggles to convert resources into consistent outcomes. The elementary school’s success proves high-poverty schools here can excel; the key question is whether those gains can be sustained and replicated as students transition to the combined middle/high campus.
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