Summary:
Zip code 31721 in Albany, Georgia is home to two schools within the Dougherty County school district: Live Oak Elementary School (grades PK-5) and Robert A. Cross Middle Magnet (grades 6-8), serving a combined 1,311 students in a predominantly low-income community.
The standout in this area is Robert A. Cross Middle Magnet, which ranks 4th out of 578 Georgia middle schools (99th percentile, 5 stars) despite its district ranking in the bottom third statewide. Its math proficiency rates are extraordinary—ranging from 77.8% to 86.2% across grades 6-8, compared to district averages of 26-29%—and it achieved a perfect 100% proficiency on the Algebra I End-of-Course exam. Science (66.5%) and social studies (79.2%) proficiency also dwarf state averages. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 5.4% is less than one-third the state average, and it maintains a favorable 13.5:1 student-teacher ratio with $16,307 per-student spending. In contrast, Live Oak Elementary School holds a 2-star rating (32nd percentile) with math proficiency declining from 42.1% in 3rd grade to 27.4% in 4th and 28.1% in 5th grade—all below state averages. Its chronic absenteeism (15.3%) exceeds the state rate, and per-student spending is $1,661 less than Cross Middle.
The contrast between these two schools is stark. Cross Middle outperforms Live Oak by roughly 50 percentage points in math, and its year-over-year trajectory is sharply upward (rising from 11th to 4th statewide), while Live Oak shows only modest early improvement. Cross Middle's success—achieved with 96% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch—demonstrates that high-poverty schools can excel with strong programming and resources. However, the gap raises questions about equity within the same district and community. For parents, Cross Middle offers exceptional academics and attendance, while Live Oak presents a school in transition with improving but still below-average scores.
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