Summary:
Zip code 30906 in Augusta, Georgia, is served by 18 schools—10 elementary, 2 middle, and 6 high schools—educating roughly 8,700 students, nearly all of whom come from economically disadvantaged households, with 17 of 18 schools reporting 100% free/reduced lunch eligibility.
The standout school in this area is Richmond County Technical Career Magnet School, which ranks in the 71st percentile statewide (130 of 455 high schools) and achieves a 100% graduation rate, chronic absenteeism of just 10.7%, and test scores 2–4 times higher than neighboring schools—proving that a specialized magnet model can succeed even in a high-poverty community. By contrast, Glenn Hills High School and Butler High School face the greatest challenges, with chronic absenteeism above 56% and proficiency rates in the single digits on most end-of-course exams. Among elementary schools, Tobacco Road Elementary School and Gracewood Elementary School show pockets of strength in 3rd and 4th grade math, while Goshen Elementary School maintains the lowest chronic absenteeism among traditional elementary schools at 12.6%.
Chronic absenteeism is the defining issue here—the Richmond County district average of 30.3% is nearly double the state average, and schools with absenteeism below 20% consistently outperform those above 50%. The two middle schools, Richmond Hill Middle School and Glenn Hills Middle School, both improved their state rankings but remain in the bottom 5% statewide. Per-student spending ranges from $11,849 to $16,811 with no clear correlation to outcomes, suggesting that how money is spent matters more than how much. The two juvenile justice facilities—Augusta Youth Development Campus and Augusta Regional Youth Detention Center—serve incarcerated students and should be evaluated separately from traditional schools. English Language Arts scores were not included in this release and will be published in December.
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