Jeff Davis High School

Jeff Davis High School in Hazlehurst, GA, serves 835 students in grades 9 through 12 and is part of the Jeff Davis County district, which holds a 4-star rating and ranks in the 79th percentile statewide.

The most impressive thing about this school is its graduation rate. For the 2024-2025 school year, 98.9% of students graduated—far above the state average of 87.2% and nearly matching nearby Appling County High School at 99.2%. This high rate has held steady above 96% for four straight years, showing a real commitment to seeing students through to completion. Academically, Jeff Davis stands out in Biology, where 55.4% of students are proficient, beating the state average by more than 8 points and easily outpacing Appling County’s 36.6%. The school also performs well for its male students, ranking in the 72nd percentile statewide for that group. The school has been on a clear upward trajectory, climbing from the 44th percentile in 2021-2022 to the 68th percentile in the most recent data, with Algebra I proficiency rising from 37.9% to 47.6% over that same period.

That said, there are areas to watch. Proficiency in American Literature and Composition sits at just 30.6%, below the state’s 40.4%, suggesting literacy skills could use more attention. Chronic absenteeism, while greatly improved from 38.3% a few years ago to 18.7% now, still runs slightly above the state average of 17.7%. It’s also worth noting that the share of students eligible for free or reduced lunch jumped dramatically from about 58% to 92% in just two years. Given that shift, the school’s rising test scores and exceptional graduation rate are even more notable—they show progress happening while serving a larger population of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Compared to Appling County, Jeff Davis has an edge in science and social studies, while Appling is stronger in Algebra I.