Holtville Middle School, Deatsville AL

Original Research by School Decision on Holtville Middle School

Holtville Middle School serves grades five through eight in the Elmore County Public School System, located in the small town of Deatsville about a half-hour north of Montgomery. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and it sits in a community that has grown rapidly over the past two decades. Deatsville re-incorporated and has seen a surge in population, though more recent estimates suggest the pace has slowed. The town remains low-density and car-dependent, with a rural-to-suburban feel. The school building itself is listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

Academically, the school’s strongest results are in English language arts. Across all tested grades, the majority of students met proficiency standards, with the highest share in eighth grade and the lowest in sixth grade. Science, which is tested only in eighth grade, also shows a solid proficiency rate. Math is a weaker area. While sixth and eighth graders posted proficiency rates near the middle of the range, fifth grade was lower and seventh grade notably lower. A parent looking at math performance would want to ask what support the school offers for students who are not yet at grade level, particularly in seventh grade. The school’s overall proficiency index across all subjects and grades places it in the top quartile among districts in Elmore County, which is a meaningful strength given that the county has four districts.

The student body is predominantly white, with a small share of Black students and very small shares of other racial groups. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a community with a range of economic circumstances. No data was available on the share of students with individualized education plans or English learners, so a family with a child in either of those categories would want to ask the school directly about services and supports. The school’s enrollment is large enough to provide a full middle school experience across four grades, but the absence of program offerings in the data means it is unclear what elective courses, extracurriculars, or specialized pathways are available.

The housing market in the area is above the state average, with home values that have risen in recent years. The local economy is spread across retail, healthcare and education, and hospitality, with no single dominant employer named. The town’s rapid growth may have implications for the school’s enrollment and facilities, though no specific district-level changes such as new construction or boundary adjustments were reported in publicly available information. The district itself appears to have undergone no parent-relevant changes in the recent period that were surfaced.

For a family considering Holtville Middle School, the picture is one of a school with clear academic strengths in reading and science, a math performance that needs attention, and a student body that is economically diverse but not racially diverse. The setting is a small, growing town that is car-dependent and residential. The school’s performance relative to other Elmore County districts is strong, but the math gap within the school is worth a closer look.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 537%

School 37% · District 40% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 4 pts above state median

Grade 641%

School 41% · District 36% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median

Grade 729%

School 29% · District 27% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 30% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 32 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 573%

School 73% · District 71% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 60%

▲ 5 pts above state median

Grade 767%

School 67% · District 59% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median

Grade 875%

School 75% · District 58% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median

Science

Grade 870%

School 70% · District 51% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 35 pts above state median

This schoolElmore 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 5Lower-income59%Higher-income84%25 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income61%Higher-income60%2 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income62%Higher-income70%8 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income68%Higher-income82%15 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income31%Higher-income43%12 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income40%Higher-income42%2 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income21%Higher-income35%14 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income37%Higher-income58%22 pp gap