The top reported proficiency rate is 76% in English language arts. The lowest is 53% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Dawes Intermediate School
Dawes Intermediate School is a regular public school serving grades three through five, located in the western part of Mobile, Alabama. It is part of the Mobile County Public School System, the countywide district that covers one of the state's largest cities and its surrounding suburban and rural areas. The school sits in a residential section of west Mobile, an area that has seen significant growth following the city's 2023 annexation of western communities. That annexation increased Mobile’s population and shifted its demographic profile, but Dawes itself draws from a neighborhood that remains predominantly white and relatively stable in housing terms. Home values in the zip code are above the Alabama median, though below the national figure, and rents are moderate. A typical household here would find homeownership more accessible than in many coastal markets, but rents have been edging downward while mortgage rates have increased, giving families a mixed affordability picture.
Dawes enrolls roughly 540 students, a size typical for an intermediate school in the region. The student body is majority white, with smaller but noticeable shares of Black, Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial students. About three in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate well below the national average and a marker of a relatively lower-poverty school by Alabama standards. Data on students with disabilities and English learners were not available, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those supports.
Academically, Dawes stands out in its county context. On the Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program, reading proficiency rates are strong across all three grades, with at least seven in ten students meeting the bar each year. Math proficiency starts at a more moderate level in third grade and climbs steadily, reaching a solid level by fifth grade. Science results, available only for fourth grade, land in a similar moderate-to-solid range. When all tested subjects and grades are combined into a single proficiency index, Dawes ranks in the top quartile among schools across Mobile County. That is a genuine strength: the school is delivering above-average academic outcomes relative to its local peers.
Because Dawes serves only grades three through five, there is no graduation rate to report. Chronic absenteeism data were also absent from available records, so a parent considering the school may want to ask the principal about attendance patterns and how the school monitors them. The school does not appear to operate as a magnet or charter, and its Title I status was not provided, leaving an open question about whether it receives federal funding for low-income student supports. Program offerings, staffing ratios, and discipline data were not available, so the full picture of enrichment and climate would require a visit or conversation with the school.
The broader environment in Mobile offers a mix of cultural amenities and industrial employment. The port, aerospace manufacturing, shipbuilding, and healthcare anchor the local economy. Downtown Mobile has a lively entertainment corridor on Dauphin Street, a historic square, and cultural institutions such as a symphony, opera, and ballet. Most of the city, however, is car-dependent, and Dawes’s west Mobile location is typical suburban strip-mall and residential development. The district itself reported no recent parent-relevant changes or initiatives, so the system appears stable in its operations.
For a family looking at this school, the core takeaway is straightforward: Dawes is a regular intermediate school in a growing part of Mobile, with reading results that are consistently strong and math results that improve as students move through the grades. Its proficiency level places it among the better-performing schools in the county, and its student body is relatively advantaged compared with district averages. The missing pieces—discipline, staffing, enrichment offerings—are worth investigating directly. For a parent who values strong core academics in a suburban setting within a mid-size city, Dawes merits a close look.
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