Summary:
Zip code 30720 in Dalton, Georgia, is home to five elementary schools serving approximately 2,867 students from Pre-K through 5th grade across two districts: Dalton Public Schools and Whitfield County.
For parents, the standout school in this area is Brookwood Elementary School, which leads the group with a 77th percentile state ranking and exceptional mathematics proficiency across all grade levels—ranging from 56.2% to 66.1%, well above state averages. Dug Gap Elementary School is the rising star, jumping 196 positions in state ranking to the 75th percentile despite having the highest poverty rate (97.75% free/reduced lunch). New Hope Elementary School excels in 5th grade science at 58% proficiency, while Westwood Elementary School shows strong 5th grade ELA scores from last year (61.6%) but experienced ranking volatility. City Park Elementary School ranks lowest at the 40th percentile despite spending the most per student ($17,025).
Notably, poverty does not predict performance here—Dug Gap and New Hope, both with over 90% poverty rates, outperform schools with lower poverty levels. The two Whitfield County schools generally outpace the three Dalton Public Schools in this zip code, particularly in 3rd grade math. All five schools maintain chronic absenteeism rates well below the state average (17.7%), with rates ranging from 7.1% to 10.0%. Brookwood achieves top results with the second-lowest spending ($14,652 per student), suggesting efficient resource use. Math proficiency typically declines from 3rd to 5th grade across most schools, though City Park bucks this trend. Current-year ELA scores are pending release, so comparisons rely on last year's data, where Brookwood led 3rd grade and Westwood led 5th grade.
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