Summary:
Webster County High School is the only high school in Webster County, serving grades 9–12 in the small, rural community of Preston, Georgia, with a very small enrollment of just 58 students.
This school faces significant academic challenges, ranking in the bottom 10% of Georgia high schools for the past three years (7th percentile in both 2024–2025 and 2025–2026). End of Course test scores are well below state averages: Algebra I proficiency was 13% in 2025–2026 compared to the state's 48.1%, and Biology proficiency was 13.3% versus the state's 47.2%. While Biology proficiency did improve from 6.7% the prior year, both subjects remain roughly 35 percentage points behind the state. The school does have some bright spots—it achieved a perfect 100% graduation rate in 2023–2024, and it invests heavily in its students with per-pupil spending of $27,668 and a very favorable 9.2:1 student-teacher ratio, which allows for small class sizes and potential individualized attention.
However, the school serves a student body where 100% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, reflecting a high-poverty environment. Chronic absenteeism is a notable concern at 21.5%, which is higher than both the district (16.7%) and state (17.7%) averages—meaning roughly 12 of the 58 students are chronically absent. Given the tiny enrollment, even small changes in student performance can cause large percentage swings, so year-over-year comparisons should be interpreted cautiously. The most pressing areas for improvement appear to be reducing absenteeism and boosting core academic proficiency, particularly in math. With such a small student population, targeted, individualized support could make a meaningful difference, though the broader challenges of rural poverty will likely require community-wide solutions.
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