Public education in Alabama

K-12 education in Alabama

Education facts

State superintendent: Eric Mackey

Number of students: 743,012

Number of teachers: 41,977

Teacher/pupil ratio: 1:17

Number of school districts: 138

Number of schools: 1,479

Graduation rate: 92%

Per-pupil spending: $10,116

See also

Alabama Department of Education • List of school districts in Alabama • Alabama • School boards portal

Public education in the United States Public education in Alabama Glossary of education terms

Note: The statistics on this page are mainly from government sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. Figures given were the most recent as of June 2015.

The Alabama public school system (prekindergarten through grade 12) operates within districts governed by locally elected school boards and superintendents. In 2022 Alabama had 743,012 students enrolled in a total of 1,479 schools in 138 school districts. There were 41,977 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 17 students, compared to the national average of 1:16. In 2020, Alabama spent on average $10,116 per pupil.^[1] The state's graduation rate was 92% percent in the 2018-2019 school year.^[2]

General information

See also: General comparison table for education statistics in the 50 states and Education spending per pupil in all 50 states

The following chart shows how Alabama compares to the national level for the most recent years for which data is available.

Academic performance

The sections below do not contain the most recently published data on this subject. If you would like to help our coverage grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia.

Education terms
For more information on education policy terms, see this article.
School board elections portal Glossary of education terms School choice on the ballot Education on the ballot

NAEP scores

See also: NAEP scores by state for a full comparison of all states

The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The chart below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Compared to three neighboring states (Tennessee, Georgia, and Mississippi), Alabama's eighth grade students fared the worst in mathematics, with only 20 percent scoring at or above proficient. See the table below for a full comparison.^[3]

Graduation, ACT and SAT scores

See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Alabama and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.^[3][4][5]

In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.^[6]

Alabama schools reported a graduation rate of 80 percent, second highest when compared to surrounding states.

In Alabama, more students took the ACT than the SAT, earning an average ACT score of 20.4.

Dropout rate

See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Alabama was lower than the national average at 1.4 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 1.4 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.^[7]

Educational choice options

See also: School choice in Alabama

School choice options in Alabama included tax credits and online learning opportunities. The state also enacted charter school legislation in March 2015. In addition, about 9.87 percent of school-age children in the state attended private schools in the 2011-2012 academic year, and an estimated 2.67 percent were homeschooled in 2012-2013.

Developments

2020

Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue
Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue
Media coverage and commentary
U.S. Supreme Court 2019-2020 term
Blaine Amendment (U.S. Constitution)
Blaine amendments in state constitutions
School choice on the ballot
Education on the ballot

See also: Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue

On June 30, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, which concerned whether the government can exclude religious institutions from student-aid programs. The case related to Article X, Section 6 of the Montana Constitution, also known as Montana’s Blaine Amendment.^[8]

In its 5-4 opinion, the court held that the application of Article X, Section 6 violated the free exercise clause of the U.S. Constitution. The majority held Article X, Section 6 barred religious schools and parents who wished to send their children to those schools from receiving public benefits because of the religious character of the school.^[9]

The case addressed the tension between the free exercise and Establishment clauses of the U.S. Constitution—where one guarantees the right of individuals' free exercise of religion and the other guarantees that the state won't establish a religion—and the intersections of state constitutions with state law and with the U.S. Constitution.

Alabama is one of the states with a Blaine Amendment.

2013

On March 14, 2013, Governor Robert Bentley signed into law the Alabama Accountability Act. The bill gives tax credits to parents who wish to transfer their children from a failing public school district to another public or private school. The state legislature, which was controlled by Republicans, passed the bill on February 28, 2014. After signing the bill, Bentley said, "For the first time ever, we're giving all public schools the flexibility they need to better serve their students."^[10]

Democrats and teacher advocacy groups contended that bill as passed had undergone significant alterations when it went to a conference committee, "transforming it from a measure allowing flexibility to school districts into a school choice bill." Political reporter Kyle Whitmire, from The Birmingham News, said that some were concerned the legislation could result in a "brain drain, that sort of concentrates your most challenged students in school systems that are already having problems. This could really create problems on both sides, for successful school systems that suddenly might be flooded with students and with failing school systems that already have problems."^[10]

2014

On April 2, 2014, Alabama enacted Senate Bill 38, which expressly recognizes home instruction by someone other than a state-certified private tutor as an option for complying with the compulsory attendance requirements and redefines a church school to include either on-site or home programs. The legislation also forbids state higher education institutions from discriminating against home-schooled applicants, and states that nonpublic schools are not subject to licensure or regulation by the state or any of its political subdivisions, including the Alabama Department of Education.^[11]

Education funding and expenditures

See also: Alabama state budget and finances

Breakdown of expenditures by function in fiscal year 2013
Source: National Association of State Budget Officers

According to the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO), states spent an average of 19.8 percent of their total budgets on elementary and secondary education during fiscal year 2013. In addition, the United States Census Bureau found that approximately 45.6 percent of the country's school system revenue came from state sources, while about 45.3 percent came from local sources. The remaining portion of school system revenue came from federal sources.^[12][13]

Alabama spent approximately 20.4 percent of its budget on elementary and secondary education during fiscal year 2013. The state school systems' revenue came primarily from state funds. Alabama's per pupil spending was below the national average, but the second highest when compared to its neighboring states.

Revenue breakdowns

See also: Public school system revenues in the U.S. to compare all states.

According to the United States Census Bureau, public school system revenues totaled approximately $598 billion in fiscal year 2013.^[13]

In Alabama, the primary source of school system revenue was state funding during fiscal year 2013, at $3.9 billion. Alabama had the second lowest total revenue when compared to neighboring states.

Expenditure breakdowns

See also: Public school system expenditures in the United States

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, public school system expenditures totaled approximately $602 billion in fiscal year 2012.^[14]

Public education expenditures in Alabama totaled approximately $7.2 billion in fiscal year 2012. This was the second lowest total expenditures when compared with Alabama's neighboring states.

Personnel salaries

See also: Public school teacher salaries in the United States

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average national salary for classroom teachers in public elementary and secondary schools declined by 1.3 percent from the 1999-2000 school year to the 2012-2013 school year. During the same period in Alabama, the average salary declined by 4.4 percent.^[16]

The following table details the fiscal year 2014 salary schedule for classroom teachers in Alabama. Salaries listed are the minimums for each pay grade and experience bracket.^[17]

Organizations

State agencies

See also: Alabama Department of Education

The Alabama Department of Education is the state education agency of Alabama. Michael Sentance was appointed as the Alabama Superintendent of Education in 2016.^[18]

The State Board of Education is composed of nine board members. The Governor serves as President (and ex officio member) and the eight remaining members are elected.^[19]

The mission statement of the Alabama State Board of Education reads:^[20]

Unions

In 2012 the Fordham Institute and Education Reform Now assessed the power and influence of state teacher unions in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Their rankings were based on 37 different variables in five broad areas: resources and membership, involvement in politics, scope of bargaining, state policies and perceived influence. Alabama ranked 20th overall for union power and influence, or "strong," which was in the second of five tiers.^[22]

The main union related to the Alabama public school system is the Alabama Education Association (AEA), an affiliate of the National Education Association (NEA). For the 2003 tax period AEA had: $16.0 million in total revenue, $16.2 million in total expenses and $18.1 million in total assets.^[23]

Government sector lobbying

See also: Alabama government sector lobbying

The main education government sector lobbying organization is the Alabama School Boards Association.

Transparency

Alabama Policy Institute (API), a nonprofit organization, conducts research on education and transparency throughout the state. In 2007 the group published a piece called, "Alabama's Public Education Funding Dilemma: Does Funding Influence Outcomes?" The article focused on drawing a connection between state funding and education progress. The article analyzed dropout rates, readiness for the workforce and/or college and academic proficiency.

On February 11, 2009, Governor Bob Riley signed an executive order to create a state spending database.^[24] The order mandated that the site, to be operated by the state Department of Finance, be operational by March 1, 2009. The site can be accessed here.

Studies and reports

State Budget Solutions study

State Budget Solutions examined national trends in education from 2009 to 2011, including state-by-state analysis of education spending, graduation rates, and average ACT scores. The study showed that states that spent the most did not have the highest average ACT test scores, nor did they have the highest average graduation rates. A summary of the study is available here. The full report can be accessed here.

Quality Counts 2014

See also: Education Week survey

Education Week, a publication that reports on many education issues throughout the country, began using an evaluation system in 1997 to grade each state on various elements of education performance. This system, called Quality Counts, uses official data on performance from each state to generate report cards for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The report card in 2014 used six different categories:

1. Chance for success
2. K-12 achievement
3. Standards, assessments and accountability
4. The teaching profession
5. School finance
6. Transitions and alignment

Each of these six categories had a number of other elements that received individual scores. Those scores were then averaged and used to determine the final score in each category. Every state received two types of scores for each of the six major categories: A numerical score out of 100 and a letter grade based on that score. Education Week used the score for the first category, "chance for success," as the value for ranking each state and the District of Columbia. The average grade received in the entire country was 77.3, or a C+ average. The country's highest average score was in the category of "standards, assessments and accountability" at 85.3, or a B average. The lowest average score was in "K-12 achievement", at 70.2, or a C- average.

Alabama received a score of 72.0, or a C- average in the "chance for success" category. This was below the national average. The state's highest score was in standards, assessments and accountability at 92.2, or an A- average. This was nine points higher than the national average of 85.3. The lowest score was in K-12 achievement at 62.2, or a D- average. The chart below displays the scores of Alabama and its surrounding states.^[25]

Note: Click on a column heading to sort the data.

Issues

Plan 2020

Starting with the 2013-2014 school year, the Alabama Department of Education replaced the No Child Left Behind Act with Plan 2020, a new way of measuring student achievement in the state. In addition to eliminating the Alabama High School Graduation Exam as the only path to graduation and switching to college and career readiness standards to judge student progress, Plan 2020 set achievement goals meant to close the achievement gap between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds. While the No Child Left Behind Act set the goal of having 100 percent of all students be proficient in math and reading, Plan 2020 set different proficiency goals for students based on subgroups. There are nine subgroups within the plan: American Indian, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, black, white, multi-race, English language learners, poverty and special education. Plan 2020 gave each subgroup an improvement goal for each year from its start in 2013 until 2020. Under the plan, all students will be at the same proficiency level by 2020.^[26][27]

Rev. Schmitt Moore, a member of the Tuscaloosa County Board of Education, said it was unfortunate that different groups of people were separated in academic performance but that Plan 2020 set goals for lower-performing subgroups in a fair way, starting with where they were and expecting them to improve from there. Tuscaloosa City Schools Board of Education Member James Minyard agreed with Moore, believing the plan was fair as long as it required every subgroup to reach the end proficiency goal at the same time.^[26]

Marvin Lucas, another member of the Tuscaloosa City Schools Board of Education, did not think the plan should set lower expectations for any child. Instead, he thought early intervention should be stressed, such as starting school earlier and working with children who are falling behind during the summer.^[26]

Harry Lee, another member of the Tuscaloosa City Schools Board of Education, expressed surprise by Plan 2020's separation of students based on subgroups, as he thought the state should be focused on teaching students all the same.^[26]

Plan 2020 was passed by the Alabama Department of Education and approved by the U.S. Department of Education.^[26] An overview presentation of Plan 2020 can be found here.

School districts

See also: School board elections portal

District types

Alabama has two main types of school districts: county school districts and city school districts. There are also a few schools that constitute their own school district, such as the Alabama School of Math & Science, the Alabama School of Fine Arts and the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind.^[28]

School board composition

Alabama school board members are generally elected by residents of the school district, although some school board members are appointed. School boards can have as few as five members or as many as 21.^[28] School board members serve four-year or six-year terms, depending on the district.^[29]

Term limits

Alabama does not impose statewide term limits on school board members.^[29]

Elections

See also: Alabama school board elections, 2024

The table below contains links to all school board elections covered by Ballotpedia in 2024 in this state. This list may not include all school districts that held elections in 2024. Ballotpedia's coverage included all school districts in the 100 largest cities by population and the 200 largest school districts by student enrollment.

Editor's note: Some school districts choose to cancel the primary election, or both the primary and general election, if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which primary or general elections were canceled. Please click through to each school district's page for more information.

Path to the ballot

To qualify as a school board candidate in Alabama, an individual must be:^[29]

• At least 18 years of age
• A U.S. citizen
• A registered voter
• A resident of the state for at least one day
• A resident of the school district that the candidate seeks to represent for at least one year prior to the election.

Campaign finance

Alabama requires candidates to form campaign committees as soon as they become candidates. This can happen in one of two ways, either when they reach the disclosure threshold of $1,000 or by filing for office with the appropriate election official. Candidates are also required to file a Statement of Economic Interests form when they file as a candidate. Candidates who have not reached the disclosure threshold of $1,000 even after filing for office are not required to file campaign finance reports until they reach the threshold.^[30]

Recent legislation

The following is a list of recent education bills that have been introduced in or passed by the Alabama state legislature. To learn more about each of these bills, click the bill title. This information is provided by BillTrack50 and LegiScan.

Note: Due to the nature of the sorting process used to generate this list, some results may not be relevant to the topic. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation pertaining to this topic has been introduced in the legislature recently.

Education ballot measures

See also: Education on the ballot and List of Alabama ballot measures

Ballotpedia has tracked the following statewide ballot measures relating to education.

1. Alabama Amendment 1 (2003)
2. Alabama Macon County Board of Education Elections, Amendment 3 (2006)
3. Alabama Special County Educational Tax Amendment, Amendment 2 (2010)
4. Alabama Popular Election of City Boards of Education, Amendment 3 (October 1999)
5. Alabama Segregation Reference Ban Amendment, Amendment 4 (2012)
6. Alabama Board of Education Expenditure Increase, Amendment 4 (2014)
7. Alabama School Districts and Taxes, Amendment 8 (1949)
8. Alabama School Funding, Amendment 16 (1955)
9. Alabama Marion County School Provisions, Amendment 2 (1958)
10. Alabama Marion County School Provisions, Amendment 2 (November, 1958)
11. Alabama University Board of Trustees, Amendment 7 (1961)
12. Alabama School District Formation, Amendment 5 (1966)
13. Alabama State education Oversight, Amendment 1 (1969)
14. Alabama State Education Lands, Amendment 7 (1969)
15. Alabama University of Alabama Trustees Amendment (March 1982)
16. Alabama Lauderdale County School Tax Amendment (March 1982)
17. Alabama Pell City Board of Education (1992)
18. Alabama Cullman City Board of Education Amendment (1994)
19. Alabama Auburn University Board of Trustees, Amendment 5 (2000)
20. Alabama Education Trust Fund Amendment (June 2002)
21. Alabama Dothan City Board of Education, Amendment 2 (June 1994)
22. Alabama Decatur City Board of Education, Amendment 3 (June 1994)
23. Alabama Recognition of Educational Contributions Amendment (1994)
24. Alabama Amendment 3, Board of Trustees Membership for University of Alabama Amendment (2018)
25. Alabama Separation of Schools, Amendment 2 (2004)
26. Alabama Amendment 1, Appointed Education Board Amendment (March 2020)
27. Alabama Auburn University Board of Trustees, Amendment 1 (2016)
28. Alabama Amendment 1, Allow Franklin County Board of Education to Manage, Sell, or Lease Land in the Franklin County School System Amendment (2024)

In the news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Alabama education policy. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

See also

• Historical public education information in Alabama
• Alabama state budget and finances
• Alabama Department of Education
• List of school districts in Alabama
• Alabama
• Education Policy in the U.S.

External links

• Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE)
• Alabama State Board of Education
• Alabama State Superintendent of Education
• ALSDE Annual Reports
• Alabama School Accountability Reporting System
• Alabama Policy Institute

Additional reading

• Times Daily, "School districts facing dilemma of replacing textbooks," September 1, 2009 (dead link)
• Associated Press, "Alabama Official Expects Another Drop In Ed Budget," August 28, 2009 (dead link)

Footnotes

	v • e State of Alabama Montgomery (capital)
Elections	What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2024 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures
Government	Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy