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Cedartown, Georgia - 11 schools
An equity score of 55/100 ranks Polk County #88 of 216 districts in Georgia (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,775 per pupil, Polk County ranks #137 of 219 Georgia districts by per-pupil spending (Georgia districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
7,878
Total Enrollment
11
Schools
$12,775
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Polk County operates 11 public schools serving 7,878 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Georgia. The school portfolio breaks down into 7 combined, 2 high, 2 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly 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 Polk County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,775 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 219 Georgia districts by per-pupil spending. See how Georgia compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 25.6% local, 52.0% state, and 22.3% 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 55/100, ranked #88 of 216 in Georgia against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 2 of 11 schools offering Advanced Placement (9 AP courses district-wide), a 579.3:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 19.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 53.3% White, 25.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Westside Elementary School, with a diversity index of 65.5/100.
Its largest campus is Cedartown High School, enrolling 1,448 students (19% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Harpst Academy, at 32 students, a 45x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Cedartown High School accounts for 18.4% of all Polk County student enrollment
That concentration means Polk County-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. 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.
Polk County school enrollment varies 45× across entities
Polk County school enrollment ranges from 32 students (lowest) to 1,448 students (highest), a spread of 1,416 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.
Polk County has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 79.4% 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.
Polk County student-counselor ratio is 579:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 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.
Polk County chronic absenteeism rate is 19.8% — 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 Polk County is typically wider than the Polk County-aggregate figure suggests.
Polk County has 11 schools, including 2 high, 2 middle, 7 combined. Total enrollment is 7,878 students.
How much does Polk County spend per student?
Polk County spends $12,775 per student. The district has an equity score of 55/100, ranking #88 in Georgia.
What is the demographic composition of Polk County?
Polk County students are 53.3% White, 25.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% African American, 0.5% Asian, averaged across 11 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Polk County?
Polk County has an equity score of 55/100, ranking #88 out of 216 districts in Georgia.