Total enrollment
3,508
+26 (+1%) vs SY 2020-21
5 schools in Fort Payne City
Alabama · 3,508 students · 1 city
Fort Payne City's footprint covers 5 public K-12 schools with combined enrollment of about 3,508 (an average of 702 per school).
4-year change in Fort Payne City
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25School count
5
+1 (+25%) vs SY 2020-21
Source: NCES Common Core of Data, enrollment-weighted demographic averages
How Fort Payne City ranks
Among districts| Measure | This district | In Alabama | In the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 40.2% | #73 of 127 | N/A |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 3,508 | #56 of 143 | #2,767 of 9,234 |
| Number of schools ranked most first | 5 | #83 of 143 | N/A |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.5:1 | #24 of 143 | #5,961 of 9,044 |
| Free or reduced-price lunch share ranked highest first | 63.7% | #54 of 143 | #2,457 of 8,164 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 57.2% | #37 of 127 | #2,018 of 6,853 |
Districts need at least 2 schools and 500 students to be ranked. Test proficiency is ranked within the state only, since each state gives a different test. Each rank links to the full list.
Inside Fort Payne City
Since 2017-18, the 4 district schools that reported both years went from 3,270 to 2,716 students (down 17%) and from 184 to 178 full-time teachers (down 3%), as of 2024-25.
Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across each school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25; schools with fewer than 100 students and schools serving specialized populations are left out. Staffing figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data and count only schools that reported students and teachers in both years.
| Name | City | Level | Grades | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Payne High School | Fort Payne | High | 09-12 | 1,106 |
| Little Ridge Intermediate School | Fort Payne | Elementary | 03-05 | 792 |
| Fort Payne Middle School | Fort Payne | Middle | 06-08 | 741 |
| Wills Valley Elementary School | Fort Payne | Elementary | KG-02 | 738 |
| Williams Avenue Elementary School | Fort Payne | Elementary | PK-PK | 131 |
About Fort Payne City
Across 5 schools, Fort Payne City teaches about 3,508 students in Alabama. By footprint it is a sparse district.
On the school-mix side, Fort Payne City spans 3 elementary, 1 middle, and 1 high school.
On a per-school basis, Fort Payne City runs about 702 students per school, 29% noticeably above the state mean of roughly 544.
Looking at the last 4 years. Combined enrollment now sits at 3,508 students, stayed largely flat from the 3,482 reported in SY 2020-21. Over that span, Fort Payne City added 1 school, going from 4 to 5.
In the discussion threads here, the community for Fort Payne City discusses open enrollment windows, redistricting talk, and busing logistics. Members of the local community share what they see day-to-day.