Madison County, AL - District Data

Original Research by School Decision on Madison County

Madison County Schools is the public school district serving the unincorporated areas and smaller towns that ring Huntsville in north Alabama. It is one of three school systems in Madison County, and it covers a broad geographic area that includes communities such as Harvest, Hazel Green, New Market, Meridianville, Toney, Owens Cross Roads, Gurley, New Hope, and others. Housing in the district ranges widely in value, with some areas showing prices near the national median and others more affordable. Rents are moderate. The district operates roughly thirty schools, spanning elementary through high school, and also includes a career technical center, an alternative school, and a virtual academy.

The student body is large and diverse. A little more than half of students are white, with a substantial Black population and smaller but meaningful shares of Hispanic, Native American, and multiracial students. Data on the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch was not reported, nor were counts of students in special education or English learner programs. Those gaps mean a parent cannot easily gauge the level of economic need or the extent of specialized support from the data available here. The district's enrollment appears to be fairly evenly distributed across grade levels, with a slight bulge in the upper middle and high school grades.

Academically, the picture is mixed and varies by subject and grade. In English language arts, the district posts solid proficiency rates, with the majority of students meeting state standards in every tested grade from third through eighth. This is a clear strength. Science proficiency is around the midpoint for grades four and eight. Math tells a different story: early elementary grades show a little over half of students proficient, but the rate drops steadily in middle school, falling to roughly a quarter of students in seventh and eighth grades. That decline is steep and warrants attention. A parent may want to ask the district how it supports math instruction in the upper grades and what interventions are in place.

When compared to other districts in the county, Madison County Schools sits around the middle of the pack on overall proficiency, above the midpoint among the county's districts. However, the comparison set is small; only two districts in the county reported data for this measure. The district's per-pupil spending is in the lower range among those same peers. Chronic absenteeism, a metric that tracks how many students miss a significant number of school days, is above the midpoint as well, meaning it is higher than the median for the county's districts. That is an area where the district may face challenges. No graduation rate was available in the data, so that important high school outcome cannot be assessed here.

The district brief turned up no recent policy changes, curriculum overhauls, or tax referendums that would alter a family's decision. That stability may be neutral or reassuring depending on what a parent values.

Overall, Madison County Schools offers a large, comprehensive system with a broad range of schools and programming, including career-technical education and a virtual option. The academic profile is strongest in literacy, while math achievement in the middle grades is a softer spot that families with children approaching that level may want to explore further. The district serves a wide mix of communities, from more rural areas to suburban-style developments, with housing that is generally more affordable than the national average. The lack of data on free lunch, special education, and graduation rates limits a full picture, but the test results provide a starting point. For a family looking at a north Alabama suburban or exurban setting, this is a district to investigate in person at the individual school level.

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District Context

Officially reported figures, 2024-25.

Enrollment

20,639

Grades

PK–12

Schools

Student body

Hispanic 8%

Black 24%

White 56%

Asian 1%

Two+ 6%

Am. Indian / AK Native 5%

Hawaiian / Pac. Isl. 0%

By economic status

Percent proficient by grade, as reported

Economically disadvantaged

Not disadvantaged

ELA

Gr 3

61%

86%

Gr 4

58%

81%

Gr 5

60%

85%

Gr 6

54%

77%

Gr 7

49%

76%

Gr 8

52%

75%

Math

Gr 3

36%

68%

Gr 4

42%

64%

Gr 5

31%

64%

Gr 6

27%

55%

Gr 7

14%

36%

Gr 8

14%

38%

Science

Gr 4

41%

64%

Gr 8

33%

58%

Schools in this District

30 schools are officially reported under this district.

Hazel Green Elementary School

Madison County High School

Monrovia Middle School

New Hope Elementary School

Harvest School

Hazel Green High School

Madison County Elementary School

Madison Cross Roads Elementary School

Monrovia Elementary School

New Hope High School

New Market School

Owens Cross Roads School

Sparkman High School

Walnut Grove School

Madison County Alternative School

Madison County Career Technical Center

Meridianville Middle School

Sparkman Middle School

Endeavor Elementary School

Mt Carmel Elementary School

Buckhorn High School

Central School

Lynn Fanning Elementary School

Legacy Elementary School

Sparkman Ninth Grade School

Riverton Elementary School

Buckhorn Middle School

Riverton Intermediate School

Moores Mill Intermediate School

Madison County Virtual Academy

Academic Performance

Percent of students meeting or exceeding state standards, by grade.

Mathematics

6 grades reported

53%

Grade 3

54%

Grade 4

49%

Grade 5

42%

Grade 6

26%

Grade 7

28%

Grade 8

English Language Arts

6 grades reported

74%

Grade 3

70%

Grade 4

74%

Grade 5

66%

Grade 6

64%

Grade 7

65%

Grade 8

Science

2 grades reported

54%

Grade 4

48%

Grade 8

Housing & Real Estate

Data as of April 2026 | District-weighted from constituent ZIP codes

Home Values

Typical home value$302,944

Year-over-year change+0.7%

Range across 23 ZIP codes$158K to $439K

vs. state typical1.28x

vs. national typical0.82x

Home value trend (12 months)

ZIP code home values (23 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Value	YoY	Weight
35761	New Market	$292K	-1.0%	19.4%
35748	Gurley	$344K	+2.0%	11.2%
35750	Hazel Green	$261K	+1.6%	10.2%
35773	Toney	$270K	+0.1%	8.9%
35760	New Hope	$221K	+3.9%	7.8%
35811	Huntsville	$286K	+1.0%	5.9%
35749	Harvest	$315K	+0.5%	4.7%
35763	Owens Cross Roads	$439K	+1.3%	4.4%
35803	Huntsville	$319K	-0.1%	4.3%
35759	Meridianville	$331K	-0.6%	3.1%

Showing top 10 of 23 ZIP codes by land area weight

Rental Market

Typical monthly rent$1,627/mo

Year-over-year change+2.4%

Range across 17 ZIP codes$1,128 to $1,770/mo

Rent trend (12 months)

ZIP code rents (17 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Rent/mo	YoY	Weight
35761	New Market	$1,647	—	19.4%
35773	Toney	$1,744	—	8.9%
35811	Huntsville	$1,340	+5.3%	5.9%
35749	Harvest	$1,715	+0.1%	4.7%
35763	Owens Cross Roads	$1,770	+6.0%	4.4%
35803	Huntsville	$1,591	+0.8%	4.3%
35759	Meridianville	$1,770	-1.6%	3.1%
35806	Huntsville	$1,286	+2.2%	1.8%
35756	Madison	$1,696	+3.1%	1.5%
35757	Madison	$1,485	+1.6%	1.3%

Showing top 10 of 17 ZIP codes by land area weight

Affordability

Est. monthly mortgage (20% down at 6.48%)$1,529/mo

Home price / national median income3.6x

Annual rent / national median income23.3%

Rent exceeds est. mortgage by$98/mo

Comparison

State typical home value$236,705 (+1.2% YoY)

National typical home value$368,198 (+0.6% YoY)

State ZHVI trend (12 months)

National ZHVI trend (12 months)

Economic Context

30-year fixed mortgage rate6.48%

National unemployment rate4.3%

National median household income$83,730

CPI: Rent of shelter (index)447.05

30-year fixed mortgage rate (12 months)

National unemployment rate (12 months)

National median household income (12 months)

CPI: Rent of shelter (index) (12 months)

Sources: Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index (Zillow Group), Realtor.com via Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED)

Data Currently Unavailable

Civil Rights Data (CRDC)

This profile is derived exclusively from publicly available federal and state datasets. It may not reflect the most current information available. We encourage parents and families to supplement this data with information published directly on the school’s website, which may include more recent figures, additional programs, or updated enrollment data.