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Sheffield, Alabama - 4 schools
An equity score of 71/100 ranks Sheffield City #24 of 146 districts in Alabama (state average 51). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $14,229 per pupil, Sheffield City ranks #23 of 146 Alabama districts by per-pupil spending (Alabama districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,043
Total Enrollment
4
Schools
$14,229
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Sheffield City operates 4 public schools serving 1,043 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Alabama. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 combined, 1 high, 1 elementary, 1 middle 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 Colbert County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $14,229 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 146 Alabama districts by per-pupil spending. See how Alabama compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 30.2% local, 46.5% state, and 23.3% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 71/100, ranked #24 of 146 in Alabama against a state average of 51, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 4 schools offering Advanced Placement (8 AP courses district-wide), a 257.3:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 42.4% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 45.8% White, 33.8% African American, 8.4% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Sheffield Junior High School, with a diversity index of 66.6/100.
Its largest campus is Wa Threadgill Primary School, enrolling 344 students (33% of the district's total enrollment).
Wa Threadgill Primary School accounts for 33.0% of all Sheffield City student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Sheffield City-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.
Sheffield City school enrollment varies 2.7× across entities
Sheffield City school enrollment ranges from 127 students (lowest) to 344 students (highest), a spread of 217 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.
Sheffield City has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 68.8% 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). Eligibility here is approaching the 75% concentration-grant threshold; it does not yet unlock the extra funding tier but sits meaningfully above the baseline 50% majority mark. 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.
Sheffield City student-counselor ratio is 257:1 — 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 Sheffield City is typically wider than the Sheffield City-aggregate figure suggests.
Sheffield City chronic absenteeism rate is 42.4% — 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.
Sheffield City has 4 schools, including 1 combined, 1 high, 1 elementary, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 1,043 students.
How much does Sheffield City spend per student?
Sheffield City spends $14,229 per student. The district has an equity score of 71/100, ranking #24 in Alabama.
What is the demographic composition of Sheffield City?
Sheffield City students are 45.8% White, 33.8% African American, 8.4% Hispanic or Latino, 0.5% Asian, averaged across 4 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Sheffield City?
Sheffield City has an equity score of 71/100, ranking #24 out of 146 districts in Alabama.