The top reported proficiency rate is 19% in English language arts. The lowest is 3% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Empower Community School
Empower Community School is a tuition-free public charter school in Bessemer, Alabama, that opened in 2022 as a new academic option for families in the city. It serves kindergarten through seventh grade and operates as its own independent school district, a structure that gives it autonomy over curriculum and staffing. The school was designed to grow gradually, beginning with early elementary and middle grades and adding older grades in subsequent years; by the 2024-25 school year it had expanded to two campuses, reflecting that planned ramp-up. For Bessemer families, it represents a public school choice distinct from the traditional Bessemer City Schools system.
Bessemer itself is a mid-sized southwestern suburb of Birmingham with a deep industrial history. Once a steelmaking center, the city has worked to diversify its economy and now hosts a mix of manufacturing, distribution, and health care employers. The population has declined from earlier peaks, and the median household income is low relative to national averages, with a substantial portion of residents living below the poverty line. Housing in the area is modestly priced, and the built environment is largely car-dependent, spread across a wide area. The school draws its student body from this community.
The students at Empower Community School are predominantly Black, with a smaller Hispanic enrollment and a very small number of white students and students of two or more races. A very high proportion of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker that the school serves a population with significant economic need. This context shapes both the peer environment and the support resources the school must provide.
Academically, the school’s state testing results are limited. The only reported data comes from grade three in the 2024-25 school year, where a small share of students met proficiency standards in reading and a very small share did so in math. Science results for a previous grade were suppressed and not available for public reporting. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages the available results, places it in the bottom quarter of all school districts in Jefferson County. Because this is a young school with only a single year of testing data for a single grade, the results are insufficient to establish a trend. A parent may want to ask the school how it plans to improve student performance and whether additional data from other grades or subjects will be available soon.
No graduation rate is reported because the school does not yet serve high school grades. Disciplinary, attendance, and staffing data were not available in the sources reviewed, so those aspects of the school environment cannot be described here.
The charter model allows Empower Community School to operate with its own instructional approach. Publicly reported sources describe it as emphasizing personalized learning, and its small size—a few hundred students across the two campuses—may offer a closer-knit setting than some larger traditional schools in the area. The school is still in its early years, and families considering it should expect a work in progress. Those who value a newer, smaller school with a free public charter structure and are comfortable with the modest academic results so far may find it worth investigating. Others may want to see additional years of data before forming a judgment.
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