Summary:
Zip code 31408 is home to two high schools serving grades 9 through 12—Groves High School and Woodville-Tompkins Technical and Career High School—both part of the Savannah-Chatham County district, with a combined enrollment of 2,163 students in a predominantly low-income area.
The standout in this area is Woodville-Tompkins, a specialized career academy that ranks in the 98th percentile statewide (9th out of 455 high schools) with a 5-star rating. It has climbed 45 spots in just two years and now exceeds state proficiency averages by wide margins: 41.5 points in Algebra I (89.6% proficient vs. 48.1% statewide), 30 points in Biology, and 27.4 points in U.S. History. The school also boasts a perfect 100% graduation rate and a chronic absenteeism rate of just 5.4%, far better than the state average of 17.7%. By contrast, Groves High School ranks in the 15th percentile with a 1-star rating, posting proficiency rates of 10.3% in Algebra I, 34.2% in Biology, and 20.0% in U.S. History—all well below district and state benchmarks. Groves' graduation rate is 77.1%, and its chronic absenteeism rate of 33.7% is double the district average.
The contrast between these two schools is striking because they serve demographically similar student populations (roughly 72-75% free/reduced lunch), yet Woodville-Tompkins outperforms Groves by 79.3 percentage points in Algebra I and 43 points in Biology. Woodville-Tompkins benefits from a lower student-teacher ratio (14.4:1 vs. 19.7:1) and higher per-student spending ($16,430 vs. $14,705). While Groves showed improvement in Biology (from 16.9% to 34.2% proficient), it remains critically below state averages. The success of Woodville-Tompkins suggests that its career-focused technical model, combined with smaller classes and additional investment, may be an effective approach for engaging economically disadvantaged students—offering a potential blueprint for improving outcomes at Groves and across the district.
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