Summary:
Zip code 30577, serving the Toccoa, Georgia area, is home to one public high school, Stephens County High School, which enrolls 1,133 students in grades 9-12 and is part of the Stephens County district.
For parents, the standout feature of Stephens County High School is its exceptional graduation rate of 96.1%, which beats the state average of 87.2% by nearly nine points. This is particularly notable given that nearly 89% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, a high-poverty environment where such outcomes are not typical. The school’s academic performance is mixed: in the most recent testing year, Biology proficiency (47.7%) actually edged out the state average (47.2%), and the school improved in every subject year-over-year—Algebra I rose from 33.0% to 35.1%, Biology jumped 8.1 points, and US History climbed 9.0 points to 24.3%. However, US History remains a significant weakness, sitting 14.2 points below the state, and Algebra I trails the state by 13 points. The school’s state ranking reflects this volatility, dropping from the 54th percentile in 2023-2024 to the 34th in 2024-2025, then rebounding to the 43rd percentile in 2025-2026.
Chronic absenteeism (18.6%) is slightly above the state rate of 17.7%, and the school’s scores often mirror the district exactly, meaning this school essentially drives the district’s high school performance—except in Algebra I, where the district outperforms the school by 8.6 points. With a student-teacher ratio of 14.3:1 and per-student spending of $13,650, the school appears to prioritize student support and completion over test optimization. The consistent year-over-year gains across all subjects, combined with the strong graduation rate, suggest a school on a positive trajectory that excels at getting students across the finish line, even while standardized test proficiency lags in some areas.
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