Geraldine School, Geraldine AL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Geraldine School

Geraldine School is a single campus serving students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade in the small, rural town of Geraldine, Alabama, perched atop Sand Mountain in DeKalb County. The school is part of the DeKalb County School System and is the only public school in the town. Geraldine itself is a low-density, highway-oriented community where civic buildings like Town Hall and the public library line State Routes 75 and a second state highway rather than a traditional downtown. The town has seen modest population growth, leveling off in recent years, and describes itself as offering a quiet rural lifestyle with room for industrial growth. For families considering this area, Geraldine School is the clear academic and community center.

Academically, the most notable pattern is a split between English language arts and mathematics. On the state’s ACAP assessments, students in elementary grades performed solidly in reading and writing, with the share meeting proficiency in the neighborhood of seven in ten across grades three through five, and rising to three in four at grade seven. The eighth-grade ELA result remained strong at roughly two-thirds proficient. Math tells a different story. While third graders showed a proficiency rate near the state average, the numbers declined sharply in upper grades: by seventh grade fewer than one in five students met the proficiency bar, and by eighth grade the share was in the single digits. Science results, tested in grades four and eight, landed in the low to middle range. Overall, the school’s composite proficiency index placed it among the top performers relative to other districts in DeKalb County, but that comparison set includes only two districts, making the contrast less meaningful than it might be in a larger county.

A parent looking at these results will see a school where early literacy is a clear strength, while the middle and high school math pathway shows a steep drop-off that warrants a conversation with the school about interventions, tutoring, and course sequencing. The absence of graduation rate data in the available information is another gap worth noting, especially since the school serves twelfth graders and typically such a rate would be reported.

The student body of roughly eleven hundred is diverse by race and ethnicity, with a substantial majority of white students, a notable share of Hispanic students, and a smaller but significant number of American Indian or Alaska Native students. More than six in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a relatively high level of economic need. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not provided, so it is not possible to assess how those populations are served or how they perform.

The school operates as a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and is classified as a 3A high school for athletics. No information was available about course access, Advanced Placement offerings, dual enrollment, career and technical programs, or staffing ratios. Similarly, data on discipline, chronic absenteeism, and school climate was absent. The DeKalb County district itself reported no major recent changes in budget, curriculum, or facilities that would likely affect families.

In sum, Geraldine School offers a familiar, rural PK-12 experience with a strong record in elementary reading and writing, a math program that may need support in the upper grades, and a student body reflective of the surrounding Sand Mountain community. Families considering the school should seek current information on high school outcomes and course offerings to round out the picture.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

85-89%Cohort of 82 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

373 schools plotted. 7 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 364%

School 64% · District 46% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 36% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 38% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Grade 644%

School 44% · District 34% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 719%

School 19% · District 16% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 87%

School 7% · District 15% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 61% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 466%

School 66% · District 53% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 573%

School 73% · District 65% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 50% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 775%

School 75% · District 49% · ▲ 26 pts above district

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 866%

School 66% · District 49% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Science

Grade 430%

School 30% · District 33% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 838%

School 38% · District 33% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

This schoolDeKalb County, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income61%Higher-income85%24 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income68%Higher-income81%13 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income54%Higher-income67%13 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income69%Higher-income86%17 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income57%Higher-income78%22 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income38%Higher-income52%14 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income40%Higher-income65%25 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income44%Higher-income44%1 pp gap