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Ozark, Alabama - 7 schools
An equity score of 43/100 ranks Dale County #98 of 146 districts in Alabama (state average 51). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,476 per pupil, Dale County ranks #105 of 146 Alabama districts by per-pupil spending (Alabama districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,270
Total Enrollment
7
Schools
$11,476
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Dale County operates 7 public schools serving 3,270 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Alabama. The school portfolio breaks down into 5 combined, 1 high, 1 elementary schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Dale County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,476 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 146 Alabama districts by per-pupil spending. See how Alabama compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 21.9% local, 64.6% state, and 13.5% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 43/100, ranked #98 of 146 in Alabama against a state average of 51, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 418.9:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 20.6% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 67.1% White, 20.7% African American, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is South Dale Middle School, with a diversity index of 60.9/100.
Its largest campus is Ariton School, enrolling 887 students (26% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Newton Elementary School, at 293 students, a 3x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Ariton School accounts for 26.3% of all Dale County student enrollment
That concentration means Dale County-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Dale County school enrollment varies 3.0× across entities
Dale County school enrollment ranges from 293 students (lowest) to 887 students (highest), a spread of 594 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Dale County has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 61.7% 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 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.
Dale County student-counselor ratio is 419:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Dale County chronic absenteeism rate is 20.6% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
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 Variation between sub-units within Dale County is typically wider than the Dale County-aggregate figure suggests.
Dale County has 7 schools, including 5 combined, 1 high, 1 elementary. Total enrollment is 3,270 students.
How much does Dale County spend per student?
Dale County spends $11,476 per student. The district has an equity score of 43/100, ranking #98 in Alabama.
What is the demographic composition of Dale County?
Dale County students are 67.1% White, 20.7% African American, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 1.0% Asian, averaged across 7 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Dale County?
Dale County has an equity score of 43/100, ranking #98 out of 146 districts in Alabama.