Summary:
Zip code 31824 is home to just one high school, Webster County High School, a very small rural school in Preston, GA, serving grades 9 through 12 with only 58 students enrolled.
Webster County High School is part of the Webster County district, which holds a 1-star rating and ranks in the bottom 13% of Georgia districts. The school itself has consistently ranked in the bottom 10% of high schools statewide over the past three years. Academically, proficiency rates on state Milestones assessments are well below state averages. In the most recent year, only 13% of students were proficient in Algebra I (compared to the state average of 48.1%), and 13.3% were proficient in Biology (versus 47.2% statewide). These numbers reflect a challenging academic environment, though the school did show improvement in Biology from the prior year. On a positive note, the school reported a perfect 100% graduation rate for the 2023-2024 school year, far exceeding the state average of 87.2%.
One of the most defining characteristics of this school is its high level of economic need—100% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. The school also has a chronic absenteeism rate of 21.5%, higher than both the district (16.7%) and state (17.7%) averages. Despite these challenges, the school offers a very favorable student-teacher ratio of 9.2:1 and spends a substantial $27,668 per student, reflecting a strong investment in resources. However, these inputs have not yet translated into higher test scores, and the school's state percentile rank has slipped for two consecutive years. Given the very small student body, year-over-year test score changes can be dramatic—a single student's performance can shift percentages significantly—so families should interpret these fluctuations with caution. Overall, Webster County High School offers a close-knit, well-funded environment, but faces significant academic and socioeconomic hurdles that families should consider.
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