The top reported proficiency rate is 63% in Social studies. The lowest is 14% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Dooly County Elementary School
Dooly County Elementary School serves early elementary and pre-kindergarten students in Pinehurst, a very small rural city in central Georgia. The school's enrollment is small, with a student body that is predominantly Black, with substantial Hispanic and smaller white populations. Every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic profile of the immediate community.
Academic performance at the school is low across all tested subjects. In English language arts, fewer than a fifth of fifth-graders met proficiency, with fourth-graders performing worse and third-graders just above that level. Mathematics results are similarly weak, with third-graders and fourth-graders in single digits for proficiency and fifth-graders slightly above a fifth. Science proficiency in fifth grade matches the ELA rate at just under a fifth. The school has only one year of reported state testing data available, so trends cannot be assessed. A parent may want to look into further detail with the school and district about what interventions are underway in reading and mathematics, since both subjects are foundational and proficiency gaps widen significantly without targeted support.
Pinehurst itself is a quiet, rural community along U.S. Route 41 with no substantial walkable downtown or local civic life anchors. Interstate 75 is accessible a short distance to the east. The town's economy is rooted in agriculture and small-scale manufacturing, with most residents owning their homes in a suburban-rural setting. Population has been stable to flat over recent years.
The broader Dooly County School District has undergone structural reorganization, consolidating elementary and middle grades into a single K-8 Academy located in Pinehurst where this school operates. The district approved facility renovations in 2024, including upgrades to the K-8 building alongside athletic and operational improvements. Voters renewed a local sales tax for school capital projects in early 2025. However, the school board opted out of Georgia's statewide homestead property-tax exemption cap, meaning school-portion property taxes will increase with rising home values rather than being capped to inflation—a factor homebuyers in the district should factor into longer-term housing affordability.
The school's grade band (pre-K through fifth) means state testing begins only in third grade, and does not include high school outcomes. For families considering Pinehurst or evaluating early elementary placement in Dooly County, the school's small size and rural setting are characteristics to weigh against the low proficiency baseline and the need to understand what the school and district are doing to address achievement gaps as students progress.
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