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Atlanta, Georgia - 86 schools
An equity score of 72/100 ranks Atlanta Public Schools #34 of 216 districts in Georgia (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $22,882 per pupil, Atlanta Public Schools ranks #3 of 219 Georgia districts by per-pupil spending (Georgia districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
50,325
Total Enrollment
86
Schools
$22,882
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Atlanta Public Schools operates 86 public schools serving 50,325 students, placing it among the largest districts in Georgia. The school portfolio breaks down into 45 combined, 19 elementary, 11 high, 11 middle schools, giving families in a major system a clear picture of grade-band coverage across a large portfolio before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Fulton County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $22,882 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 22 of 219 Georgia districts by per-pupil spending. See how Georgia compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 68.7% local, 15.6% state, and 15.7% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 72/100, ranked #34 of 216 in Georgia against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 13 of 86 schools offering Advanced Placement (130 AP courses district-wide), a 343.5:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 44.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 76.1% African American, 12.3% White, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Sara Rawson Smith Elementary School, with a diversity index of 74.2/100.
Its largest campus is North Atlanta High School, enrolling 2,368 students (5% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Hillside Conant School, at 67 students, a 35x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Atlanta Public Schools school enrollment varies 35× across entities
Atlanta Public Schools school enrollment ranges from 67 students (lowest) to 2,368 students (highest), a spread of 2,301 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity, the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Atlanta Public Schools has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 78.7% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility — including this one — receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Atlanta Public Schools student-counselor ratio is 344:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Atlanta Public Schools is typically wider than the Atlanta Public Schools-aggregate figure suggests.
Atlanta Public Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 44.9% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Atlanta Public Schools has 86 schools, including 11 high, 11 middle, 45 combined, 19 elementary. Total enrollment is 50,325 students.
How much does Atlanta Public Schools spend per student?
Atlanta Public Schools spends $22,882 per student. The district has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #34 in Georgia.
What is the demographic composition of Atlanta Public Schools?
Atlanta Public Schools students are 76.1% African American, 12.3% White, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 0.8% Asian, averaged across 86 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Atlanta Public Schools?
Atlanta Public Schools has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #34 out of 216 districts in Georgia.