12 Nov Decatur City Schools Preview

If you have school-aged children and are considering a home in Decatur, Georgia, you might have questions about the public school system. This article should serve as a preview to City Schools of Decatur, to give you a bit more information so you can make an informed decision about where to live and where your children should attend school.

Basic Numbers

City Schools of Decatur oversees public education within the city limits of Decatur, GA, serving just over 4000 students among a population of about 18,000. There are three primary schools serving grades K-3, housing anywhere between 285 and 450 students each; there is one intermediate Academy for grades 4-5, one middle school (Renfroe Middle School, grades 6-8) and one high school (Decatur High, grades 9-12). There is also an Early Childhood Learning Center operated by the school system, for a total of 8 schools.

Teaching Staff

The student-teacher ratio for the Decatur school system is 13:1. Nearly half of the teachers on staff have earned master’s degrees, while another 20 percent have earned specialist degrees in their respective fields. The average tenure of the teaching staff is 14 years.

Scores, Rankings and Stats

City Schools of Decatur is consistently ranked among the top school systems in the state of Georgia, regularly testing well above average. The school system has an aggressive goal of being one of the top ten small-town school systems in the nation. Greatschools.com gives City Schools of Decatur a score of 9 out of 10. Most grade levels have tested well above the 90th percentile in all subjects over the past five years, with improving trends year to year.

The Future

While still relatively small in numbers, the Decatur public school system is currently the fastest growing in the state of Georgia. The Board of Education is currently developing a master plan for increasing budget and funding expansion projects to accommodate the growing numbers of students over the next several years.