The top reported proficiency rate is 36% in English language arts. The lowest is 7% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Lowndes County Middle School
Lowndes County Middle School serves a small group of students in grades six through eight from Fort Deposit and the surrounding rural area of Lowndes County, Alabama. It is a regular public school within the Lowndes County district. The enrollment is modest for a middle school, and nearly every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the high poverty rate in this part of the state. The student body is predominantly Black, with a small share of Hispanic students and an even smaller share of white students. The school sits in a town that has seen its population decline in recent years, and the local economy mixes manufacturing, retail, and the regional pecan processor Priester's Pecans, which is headquartered in Fort Deposit. Publicly reported information describes Fort Deposit as a low-density, auto-oriented rural town where civic life is concentrated along Old Fort Road, with the school integrated into the town rather than isolated on a separate campus.
State test results from the most recent school year, the only year available, show that academic proficiency across all three tested grades is low. In mathematics, the share of students meeting the state's proficiency bar is in the very low single digits for each grade, a figure well below the state average. English language arts results are higher but still modest, with roughly a third to two-fifths of students across grades performing at the proficient level. In eighth-grade science, a bit more than a quarter of students were proficient. Because this is the only year of data for this assessment, no trend can be drawn. The state has not provided information on how these results compare to other schools in the county, as Lowndes County has only the one district for its middle schools, so there is no local peer group to place these numbers against. A parent should consider that these proficiency rates are very low, especially in math, and may want to investigate what support and intervention programs the school offers to address this.
The school environment data that is often useful for families, such as chronic absenteeism rates, discipline incidents, staffing ratios, and course access, was not available. Neither were civil rights data on special education or English learner enrollment. The school’s directory listing identifies it as a regular public school, but its Title I status is not reported. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes or initiatives at the district level, so it is unclear whether any academic improvement plans or facility upgrades are underway.
Housing in the area is relatively affordable compared to state and national benchmarks. Home values sit well below the Alabama median and even farther below the national median, which may be a factor for families considering a move to the district. The area’s unemployment rate has been near the national average in recent months. No specific program offerings, such as extracurriculars, arts, or career and technical education pathways, are documented in the data provided. Because this is a middle school, it does not have a graduation rate to report, and state testing in grades six through eight is standard, so the low scores cannot be attributed to an untested grade band or alternative mission.
For a family weighing options, Lowndes County Middle School presents as a small, rural, high-poverty school where academic performance is well below what is typical across Alabama, particularly in mathematics. The school's peer environment is predominantly Black and low-income, and the town itself is declining in population with limited economic diversification. The absence of additional school-level data on programs, staffing, and student support makes it difficult to assess what enrichment or remediation is available on site. A parent looking into this school would be wise to contact the school directly to ask about tutoring, intervention strategies, and any after-school activities, as well as to understand how the district is approaching the academic challenges visible in the test results.
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