Hamilton Crossing Elementary School, Cartersville GA

Original Research by School Decision on Hamilton Crossing Elementary School

Hamilton Crossing Elementary School serves pre-K through fifth grade in Cartersville, a growing manufacturing and residential hub in Bartow County. The school enrolls a student body that is slightly more than half white, with a quarter Hispanic, roughly a tenth Black, and small shares of Asian and multiracial students. About two-thirds of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic mix of the community.

The school's academic performance shows uneven results across subjects. In math, Hamilton Crossing is performing above the midpoint among Bartow County districts. Students in fifth grade score stronger in math than in the lower tested grades, and science proficiency in fifth grade is the school's clearest strength. English language arts tells a different story: proficiency is low across all tested grades, with only around a third of students meeting grade-level standards. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly regarding any interventions or supports the school is implementing to address reading and writing achievement.

Cartersville itself is on a vigorous growth trajectory. Major manufacturers including Anheuser-Busch, Shaw Industries, Toyo Tire, and Komatsu anchor the local economy, and recent announcements signal continued investment. On the residential side, multiple new subdivisions are underway with a mix of single-family homes, townhomes, and cottages, attracting families drawn by proximity to Atlanta and strong housing demand. The historic downtown offers walkable gathering spaces, museums, theaters, and a farmers market, though outside that core the city is auto-oriented. Housing costs are moderate for the region, and the community has an active parks and trails system.

The school serves a neighborhood in active expansion. It is part of the Bartow County School System, which recently opted out of Georgia's statewide homestead property tax exemption; families relocating to the district should be aware this decision means property assessments can grow without the annual inflation cap the statewide referendum would have provided. The county did pass a referendum in 2024 expanding the homestead exemption for disabled residents, raising the income eligibility threshold. These are property tax considerations worth weighing for households planning to move into the area.

Hamilton Crossing is a regular public elementary school with no charter or magnet designation, serving a broad population of elementary-age students in a setting of substantial residential development.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 347%

School 47% · District 45% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 445%

School 45% · District 49% · ▼ 3 pts below district

even with state median · even with county median

Grade 555%

School 55% · District 48% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 328%

School 28% · District 31% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 435%

School 35% · District 38% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 43% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Science

Grade 560%

School 60% · District 39% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Social studies

Grades 3-882%

School 82% · district not reported

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

This schoolBartow 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-income31%Higher-income38%7 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income19%Higher-income26%7 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income32%Higher-income59%27 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income27%Higher-income40%13 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income36%Higher-income65%29 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income43%7 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income45%Higher-income66%21 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income39%Higher-income58%19 pp gap