Cottondale Elementary School

Summary:

Cottondale Elementary School is a public elementary school in Cottondale, Alabama, serving 451 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the Tuscaloosa County School District, which is ranked 90 out of 137 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Cottondale Elementary has a diverse student population, with 39.25% White, 28.16% African American, and 27.94% Hispanic students. However, the school consistently ranks in the bottom half of Alabama elementary schools, with a ranking between 447 and 542 out of 680-695 schools over the past 10 years. Its performance on state assessments is also below the Tuscaloosa County and Alabama averages across grade levels and subject areas. While Hispanic and Native American students perform relatively well, the school struggles with its African American and White student populations, ranking in the bottom quarter of schools for these subgroups.

Cottondale Elementary has a high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 61.64% to 83.81% over the past three school years. This is significantly higher than the surrounding schools, such as Maxwell Elementary and Verner Elementary, which perform significantly better on state assessments and have higher statewide rankings. This suggests that addressing the needs of students from low-income backgrounds could be a key focus area for Cottondale Elementary as it works to improve student outcomes.


Detail:

Public PK, KG-5

 2301 Cottondale Ln
       Cottondale, AL  35453


(205) 342-2642

District: Tuscaloosa County

SchoolDigger Rank:
542nd of 684 Alabama Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $9,707 Help


Students who attend Cottondale Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    DavisEmerson Middle School
High:    Holt High School

Student/teacher ratio:  17.1 Help
Number of students:  447

Racial breakdown:

White:
37.8%
African American:
28.2%
Hispanic:
28.2%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  67.1% Help


 See top rated Alabama elementary schools

 Compare Cottondale Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Cottondale Elementary School ranks worse than 79.2% of elementary schools in Alabama. It also ranks 15th among 17 ranked elementary schools in the Tuscaloosa County School District. (See more...)
Help
Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.99. (See more...)
Help
Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.
Student Body
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Compare Details Student population at Cottondale Elementary School is diverse. Racial makeup is: White (37.8%), African American (28.2%), Hispanic (28.2%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 67.1% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Cottondale Elementary School is 17.1. 12 elementary schools in the Tuscaloosa County School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)
Help
Compare Cottondale Elementary School employs 26 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Cottondale Elementary School is $9,707, which is the 6th highest among 17 elementary schools in the Tuscaloosa County School District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Cottondale Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Cottondale Elementary School 542nd of 684 Alabama public elementary schools. (See Cottondale Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


English Language Learner students:
Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
African American students:
Hispanic students:
Native American students:
White students:


Tuscaloosa County:

SchoolDigger ranks Tuscaloosa County 90th of 137 Alabama school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Cottondale Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2004 41.80 394th 623 36.8%
2005 43.36 439th 688 36.2%
2006 35.99 510th 689 26.0%
2007 30.09 562nd 698 19.5%
2008 27.42 589th 698 15.6%
2009 34.66 534th 696 23.3%
2010 15.29 661st 704 6.1%
2011 35.50 545th 709 23.1%
2012 18.32 645th 696 7.3%
2013 37.31 534th 696 23.3%
2014 40.58 447th 695 35.7%
2015 35.05 464th 691 32.9%
2016 25.79 526th 691 23.9%
2017 35.83 456th 688 33.7%
2018 22.46 533rd 680 21.6%
2019 25.46 514th 681 24.5%
2021 36.94 448th 692 35.3%
2022 30.75 477th 687 30.6%
2023 26.77 501st 680 26.3%
2024 20.99 542nd 684 20.8%
See the entire list of Alabama Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 40.98 54th 100 46.0%
2022 38.33 72nd 110 34.5%
2023 26.08 103rd 123 16.3%
2024 33.80 97th 131 26.0%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 16.21 256th 280 8.6%
2018 52.91 138th 344 59.9%
2019 45.16 202nd 392 48.5%
2021 65.86 85th 398 78.6%
2023 43.06 197th 373 47.2%
2024 54.97 143rd 395 63.8%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 46.53 318th 567 43.9%
2018 29.53 494th 651 24.1%
2019 43.19 385th 649 40.7%
2021 51.75 318th 653 51.3%
2022 41.53 392nd 651 39.8%
2023 36.36 408th 623 34.5%
2024 26.79 510th 670 23.9%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 32.52 463rd 639 27.5%
2018 17.62 551st 640 13.9%
2019 17.90 550th 646 14.9%
2021 51.60 315th 656 52.0%
2022 36.70 423rd 656 35.5%
2023 27.49 482nd 645 25.3%
2024 25.81 492nd 650 24.3%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 38.74 411th 639 35.7%
2018 28.97 476th 650 26.8%
2019 39.79 409th 650 37.1%
2021 21.91 516th 669 22.9%
2022 23.55 509th 669 23.9%
2023 26.02 488th 649 24.8%
2024 18.30 537th 655 18.0%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 33.93 223rd 336 33.6%
2018 32.30 311th 423 26.5%
2019 26.38 354th 426 16.9%
2021 43.42 214th 426 49.8%
2022 38.65 242nd 426 43.2%
2023 50.33 182nd 427 57.4%
2024 19.20 383rd 420 8.8%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 60.31 42nd 140 70.0%
2019 33.58 112th 152 26.3%
2021 58.77 59th 164 64.0%
2022 43.62 103rd 175 41.1%
2023 33.12 127th 184 31.0%
2024 45.77 97th 196 50.5%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for Native American students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 37.30 41st 58 29.3%
2021 64.89 20th 63 68.3%
2022 46.86 30th 65 53.8%
2023 33.15 38th 57 33.3%
2024 46.40 28th 59 52.5%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for Native American Students!

Rank History for White students at Cottondale Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools AL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2017 25.33 308th 369 16.5%
2018 12.05 490th 508 3.5%
2019 30.80 399th 529 24.6%
2021 28.40 411th 539 23.7%
2022 25.54 443rd 540 18.0%
2023 14.58 487th 528 7.8%
2024 15.45 494th 535 7.7%
See the entire list of Best Alabama Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Alabama State Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Cottondale Elementary School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 





Data source: Alabama State Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Cottondale Elementary School

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Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 0 0 0 0 0 n/a n/a 557 557
1989 544 45 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 589
1990 567 40 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 607
1991 582 64 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 647
1992 572 58 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 631
1993 593 44 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 637
1994 604 30 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 634
1995 564 44 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 609
1996 564 44 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 609
1997 465 47 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 513
1998 519 64 0 1 1 n/a n/a 0 585
1999 490 77 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 568
2000 467 104 0 4 0 n/a n/a 0 575
2001 465 98 1 4 0 n/a n/a 0 568
2002 436 115 2 3 0 n/a n/a 0 556
2003 436 115 2 3 0 n/a n/a 0 556
2004 375 95 1 1 0 n/a n/a 0 472
2005 339 106 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 445
2006 356 101 0 2 0 n/a n/a 3 462
2007 347 101 0 9 0 n/a n/a 7 464
2008 342 99 0 17 0 n/a n/a 0 458
2009 322 130 0 24 0 n/a n/a 0 476
2010 310 111 1 29 0 n/a n/a 13 464
2011 298 83 0 33 0 0 0 0 414
2012 291 84 0 37 0 0 4 0 416
2013 257 76 0 26 0 0 11 0 370
2014 250 93 3 34 0 0 8 0 388
2015 242 94 3 50 0 1 12 0 402
2016 206 92 1 55 0 0 12 0 366
2017 187 93 1 72 3 0 4 0 360
2018 177 95 1 80 3 0 6 0 362
2019 183 109 0 90 4 0 3 0 389
2020 189 121 0 96 5 0 8 0 419
2021 174 119 0 106 5 0 6 0 410
2022 173 131 0 130 3 0 14 0 451
2023 177 127 0 126 3 0 18 0 451
2024 169 126 1 126 2 0 23 0 447

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Cottondale Elementary School

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Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 557 23.0 24.2 0
1989 589 23.0 25.6 n/a
1990 607 24.0 25.2 0
1991 647 28.0 23.1 n/a
1992 631 31.0 20.3 n/a
1993 637 33.0 19.3 n/a
1994 634 35.9 17.7 n/a
1995 609 33.6 18.1 n/a
1996 609 33.6 18.1 n/a
1997 513 30.6 16.8 34.1
1998 585 31.8 18.4 36.1
1999 568 36.0 15.8 46.1
2000 575 34.9 16.5 46.1
2001 568 36.0 15.8 52.1
2002 556 36.0 15.4 45.3
2003 556 36.0 15.4 45.3
2004 472 33.0 14.3 48.3
2005 445 31.0 14.4 56.9
2006 462 31.0 14.8 55.3
2007 464 35.0 13.3 58.9
2008 458 33.0 13.9 55.5
2009 476 31.8 14.8 62.4
2010 464 29.0 16.0 72.3
2011 414 32.7 12.6 68.1
2012 416 24.0 17.3 76.2
2013 370 25.0 14.8 73.8
2014 388 21.0 18.4 72.9
2015 402 20.0 20.1 73.4
2016 366 21.0 17.4 47.3
2017 360 20.0 18.0 42.2
2018 362 18.0 20.1 69.6
2019 389 21.0 18.5 66.8
2020 419 22.0 19.0 72.6
2021 410 26.0 15.7 75.6
2022 451 25.0 18.0 61.6
2023 451 28.0 16.1 83.8
2024 447 26.0 17.1 67.1

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Cottondale Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 557 23.0 24.2 0
1989 589 23.0 25.6 n/a
1990 607 24.0 25.2 0
1991 647 28.0 23.1 n/a
1992 631 31.0 20.3 n/a
1993 637 33.0 19.3 n/a
1994 634 35.9 17.7 n/a
1995 609 33.6 18.1 n/a
1996 609 33.6 18.1 n/a
1997 513 30.6 16.8 34.1
1998 585 31.8 18.4 36.1
1999 568 36.0 15.8 46.1
2000 575 34.9 16.5 46.1
2001 568 36.0 15.8 52.1
2002 556 36.0 15.4 45.3
2003 556 36.0 15.4 45.3
2004 472 33.0 14.3 48.3
2005 445 31.0 14.4 56.9
2006 462 31.0 14.8 55.3
2007 464 35.0 13.3 58.9
2008 458 33.0 13.9 55.5
2009 476 31.8 14.8 62.4
2010 464 29.0 16.0 72.3
2011 414 32.7 12.6 68.1
2012 416 24.0 17.3 76.2
2013 370 25.0 14.8 73.8
2014 388 21.0 18.4 72.9
2015 402 20.0 20.1 73.4
2016 366 21.0 17.4 47.3
2017 360 20.0 18.0 42.2
2018 362 18.0 20.1 69.6
2019 389 21.0 18.5 66.8
2020 419 22.0 19.0 72.6
2021 410 26.0 15.7 75.6
2022 451 25.0 18.0 61.6
2023 451 28.0 16.1 83.8
2024 447 26.0 17.1 67.1

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Cottondale Elementary School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $1,529 (15.8%) $8,155 (84.0%) $9,707

Data source: Alabama Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Cottondale Elementary School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 514th of 681 Elementary schoolsRanks 501st of 680 Elementary schools
 1.8%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Mathematics (Cottondale Elementary School)46.921.3
 25.6%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Tuscaloosa County)54.337.2
 17.1%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Alabama)57.543.6
 13.9%
4th Grade Mathematics (Cottondale Elementary School)18.619.4
 0.8%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Tuscaloosa County)47.734.6
 13.1%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Alabama)47.334.9
 12.4%
5th Grade Mathematics (Cottondale Elementary School)34.228.8
 5.3%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Tuscaloosa County)4631
 15%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Alabama)44.933.9
 10.9%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students389451
 15.9%
African American109127
 16.5%
American Indian43
 25%
Asian00
Hispanic90126
 40%
Pacific Islander00
White183177
 3.3%
Two or More Races318
 500%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients66.8%83.8%
 17%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Cottondale Elementary School

Cottondale Elementary School ranks in the bottom 20.8% of Alabama elementary schools.

In the 2023-24 school year, 447 students attended Cottondale Elementary School.

Students at Cottondale Elementary School are 38% White, 28% African American, 28% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races.

Students who attend Cottondale Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : DavisEmerson Middle School
High : Holt High School


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Alabama State Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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