Fox Elementary School, Columbus GA

Original Research by School Decision on Fox Elementary School

Fox Elementary serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Columbus, Georgia, with an enrollment of about 350 students. All students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Black, with smaller populations of multiracial, white, and Hispanic students.

The school's most recent state assessment results show proficiency rates that are very low across all tested subjects and grades. In mathematics, the rates range from single digits to about one in ten students meeting proficiency standards, with results particularly weak in fifth grade. English language arts proficiency is similarly low, with roughly one in ten fifth graders meeting standards and fewer than one in twenty in third and fourth grades. Science proficiency in fifth grade stands at about one in thirty-five students. These results represent a significant academic challenge that parents should understand clearly. A parent exploring this school would want to discuss directly with staff what support systems are in place, what the school's improvement plan looks like, and how the school uses data to identify and help students who are struggling.

The school is part of Muscogee County Public Schools, which covers the consolidated city-county area of Columbus. The district recently secured voter approval for continued education sales tax funding through the remainder of this decade, supporting major facility projects including the consolidation of two elementary schools into a single updated building and comprehensive safety retrofits across the system. The district has also raised property taxes above state rollback rates in multiple recent years to support operations and capital needs, a pattern that will continue to affect housing costs for families in the area.

Columbus itself is a mid-sized city along the Chattahoochee River with a walkable downtown and riverfront trail anchoring civic life, though much of the city remains car-dependent. Fort Moore, Aflac, and healthcare and financial services employers shape the local economy. Population growth has been slow, with some outmigration toward Atlanta, though development projects including manufacturing expansions and a new mixed-use ballpark facility are bringing investment. Housing costs in the zip code are moderate relative to national benchmarks, and both home values and rents have risen modestly in the past year.

Fox Elementary's low proficiency rates are the dominant factor a family would weigh. The school serves a fully economically disadvantaged student population with significant academic needs. Whether this is the right placement depends on what additional supports a student might need, what interventions the school has underway, and how the school's staff can partner with families on learning at home.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 38%

School 8% · District 27% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 32 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 411%

School 11% · District 30% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 34 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 53%

School 3% · District 26% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 33%

School 3% · District 25% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 27 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 48%

School 8% · District 27% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 511%

School 11% · District 32% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 27 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Science

Grade 53%

School 3% · District 32% · ▼ 29 pts below district

▼ 36 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Social studies

Grades 3-850%

School 50% · district not reported

▼ 34 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

This schoolMuscogee 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.