The top reported proficiency rate is 68% in English language arts. The lowest is 43% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Pelham Ridge
Pelham Ridge is a regular public elementary school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in Pelham, a suburban city in Shelby County roughly 20 miles south of downtown Birmingham. The school is part of the Pelham City district, which the district brief describes as having no recent major changes of lasting impact. Pelham itself is a growing city with a diversified local economy anchored by healthcare, education, retail, and hospitality, and it is a community where the built environment is auto-oriented and development is spread out rather than concentrated in a compact downtown core.
The school’s enrollment is substantial for an elementary campus, and its student body is diverse. White students make up the largest share, followed by Hispanic students and then Black students, with smaller groups of students who are Asian, of two or more races, or American Indian or Alaska Native. More than half of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker that a majority of families face economic pressure.
Pelham Ridge uses Alabama’s state assessment, the ACAP, to measure student learning. State testing data is available for the 2024-25 school year, covering reading, math, and science in grades three through five. In English language arts, the school’s results run at a level where about two-thirds of students in each tested grade meet the proficiency standard, a consistent showing across third, fourth, and fifth grades. Math results are lower, with roughly half of third graders proficient but with a noticeable drop in fourth grade and a modest rebound in fifth grade; the fourth-grade group is the lowest point in the school’s academic profile. In science, tested in fourth grade, results are below the math and reading marks. The school’s overall proficiency index sits below the midpoint when compared with other districts in Shelby County, meaning its composite scores are lower than the middle of the field among the three districts in the county. Because only one year of data is available in the trend series, there is no way to see whether these results represent a change or a stable pattern.
Pelham Ridge is not a charter school, nor is it a magnet school. Information on Title I status, special education identification rates, and English learner counts was not available in the data, so a parent who needs those specifics would want to ask the school directly. Discipline data, staffing ratios, and chronic absenteeism rates are also absent, which limits the picture of school climate beyond test scores. There is no graduation rate because the school does not serve high school grades.
The housing market in the Pelham area adds context. Home values are above the state benchmark, reflecting the suburban corridor south of Birmingham, but are near the national benchmark. The estimated monthly mortgage payment on a median-value home in the area, with a typical down payment, would be a meaningful share of a typical household budget, and the gap between renting and buying is modest. For a family considering a move to Pelham, the cost of housing is a practical factor that aligns with the school’s majority-free-lunch population: the community has a mix of economic circumstances, and the school’s own demographics reflect that range.
Pelham Ridge is a mid-sized, diverse elementary school in a growing suburban city. Its reading results are a relative strength, while math and science performance are areas where a parent may want to look into this further with the school, especially given its position below the county midpoint on overall proficiency. The lack of multi-year trend data means it is not possible to tell whether these are improving or declining numbers. The school sits within a district that appears to be stable, in a city that has been growing for decades, with an economy that is not tied to a single industry. For a family choosing an elementary school in the Pelham area, this is a school whose academic profile is mixed, with a stronger showing in reading than in math, and whose student population reflects a broad economic and racial mix.
See more original research from School Decision →