Westmont Elementary School, Martinez GA

Original Research by School Decision on Westmont Elementary School

Westmont Elementary School is a public elementary school in Martinez, Georgia, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. It opened in 2024, the result of a district restructuring that closed South Columbia Elementary and triggered rezoning across Columbia County Schools to accommodate growth in the county. The school sits in a suburban setting on Oakley Pirkle Road in Martinez, a family-oriented residential community adjacent to Augusta with established neighborhoods and a sizable military and veteran population tied to Fort Eisenhower.

The school's academic performance shows a mixed picture. In mathematics, Westmont's proficiency rates vary by grade. Fourth grade performed strongest, with more than half of tested students reaching proficiency. Third and fifth grades came in lower, each with proficiency rates below the median. In language arts, the pattern is less consistent. Fifth grade students showed the best results, with a majority proficient, while third grade posted the lowest rate across both subjects. Science proficiency in fifth grade, the only grade tested in that subject, fell below the math and language-arts averages. The school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile relative to other districts in Columbia County, though this reflects performance on the assessments given at the grade levels tested.

State testing covers only grades three through five at the elementary level, so Westmont's pre-kindergarten through second-grade programs have no comparable state assessment data. The school is still in its first year of operation, making it too early to establish meaningful trend data or to assess how results may shift as the school builds institutional practices and familiarity.

Enrollment and student demographics information was not available in the data. A parent may want to contact the school directly to learn about total enrollment, the composition of the student body, and whether the school serves Title I–eligible populations. The district has adopted its own Academic Curriculum for Excellence (ACE) across language arts, math, science, and social studies as part of a broader curriculum initiative, moving beyond state standards and adding embedded benchmark assessments. This district-wide shift defines academic content and teaching approach across the county.

Martinez itself is a well-established suburban area with primarily owner-occupied housing and a residential character centered on tree-lined neighborhoods rather than a walkable downtown. The Savannah Rapids Park, featuring the historic headgates of the Augusta Canal and a trail system connecting into downtown Augusta, is the area's primary civic gathering place. Commercial activity is organized around arterial roads and shopping centers rather than a central business district. The wider county has experienced rapid growth since the early 2000s, driven in part by Fort Eisenhower employment and regional economic expansion, though Martinez itself saw its heaviest growth in the 1980s and 1990s. Housing values in the Martinez ZIP code are moderate relative to Georgia benchmarks, and the area maintains a family-oriented suburban market with stable, long-occupied homes. The county has been selective about development patterns, emphasizing single-family homes over townhomes and rejecting more compact residential forms.

Columbia County Schools approved a continuation of a 1-cent education sales tax in November 2024, securing funding through the coming decade without a tax increase. The district also cut the school millage rate for the fifth consecutive year, the lowest in decades, providing ongoing property-tax relief. These fiscal decisions reflect a commitment to sustaining capital investment in schools and facilities as the county grows.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 359%

School 59% · District 64% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Grade 473%

School 73% · District 72% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 68% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 347%

School 47% · District 52% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 61% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 65% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 68% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Social studies

Grades 3-892%

School 92% · district not reported

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

This schoolColumbia 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-income52%Higher-income49%3 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income43%Higher-income58%14 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income54%Higher-income58%4 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income50%Higher-income55%5 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income59%Higher-income58%1 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income57%Higher-income73%16 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income49%Higher-income72%23 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income55%Higher-income68%13 pp gap