Sand Hill Elementary School, Carrollton GA

Original Research by School Decision on Sand Hill Elementary School

Sand Hill Elementary serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Carrollton, a county seat roughly 45 to 50 miles west of Atlanta that functions as an educational and economic hub for west Georgia and east Alabama. The school sits in an area experiencing residential growth tied to Atlanta's outward expansion, with new single-family developments and workforce housing projects breaking ground nearby.

The school's enrollment is distributed across its grade band, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting economic diversity in the district. The student body is predominantly white, with meaningful representation of Black and Hispanic students and a smaller multiracial population. Data on special education enrollment and English learner status was not available.

In math, Sand Hill's proficiency results show a modest decline across the grade span. Third-graders posted proficiency around two-thirds, but proficiency dropped noticeably by fourth and fifth grade, settling at roughly half in each grade. Science proficiency in fifth grade sits just above half. English language arts is the softest area: third-grade proficiency is in the mid-thirties, rising somewhat to the low forties by fourth grade, then climbing to about half by fifth grade. Across all tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it above the midpoint among Carroll County's two school districts. Only one prior year of state testing data was available, so trend direction cannot be assessed.

A parent may want to learn more directly from the school about reading instruction and literacy support in the early grades, where ELA results are notably below math, and about whether interventions are being deployed to address the grade-by-grade math decline as students move toward middle school.

Carrollton itself is a mixed-texture place. A historic downtown centered on Adamson Square hosts shops, galleries, restaurants, and civic events. The University of West Georgia anchors the west side of the city. Beyond downtown, the community is car-oriented with limited public transit; however, an 18-mile paved GreenBelt loop offers a major spine for walking and biking through neighborhoods, parks, and past major employers. Manufacturing, health care, and education drive the local economy, with Southwire Company, Tanner Health System, and the university as dominant employers. Housing near the school is moderately priced relative to state and national benchmarks, though rental costs consume a meaningful share of income for local renters. The area is actively developing new residential tracts and is pursuing infill downtown to accommodate growth and workforce housing.

The Carroll County school system has reduced its property tax millage rate multiple times in recent years, a tangible factor for families evaluating housing costs. Voters also approved continuation of the school sales tax in a March 2025 referendum, securing funding for facility improvements through 2032.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 363%

School 63% · District 53% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 450%

School 50% · District 53% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 551%

School 51% · District 50% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 40% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 5 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 43% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 44% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Science

Grade 552%

School 52% · District 55% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 12 pts above state median · even with county median

Social studies

Grades 3-887%

School 87% · district not reported

▲ 3 pts above state median · even with county median

This schoolCarroll 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-income29%Higher-income52%23 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income32%Higher-income67%35 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income30%Higher-income58%27 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income30%Higher-income59%29 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income59%Higher-income81%22 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income57%Higher-income85%27 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income35%Higher-income64%28 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income51%Higher-income77%26 pp gap