Francis Marion School

Francis Marion School is one of the modestly sized multi-level schools in Marion, Alabama, one of the schools within Perry County, with 413 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 12. Enrollment runs roughly 39% leaner than the state mean of about 673.

Perry County runs 2 schools in total, collectively educating 815 students. Francis Marion School is one of those campuses.

Looking at the student body, Francis Marion School records that 98% of students identify as Black, making the school strongly Black-majority. The wider county runs roughly 71% Black, putting the school's mix visibly more Black than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, On paper, Francis Marion School has 24 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 17.6:1. That tracks the state average closely. Roughly 82% of students at Francis Marion School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

With demographic context factored in, Francis Marion School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 24.2%, the actual is 19.4%, a residual of -4.8 points.

Around the school, Perry County reports that the typical household earns roughly $37,654 per year, about 16% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 23% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Francis Marion School is one of 3 public schools in Perry County (combined enrollment of about 1,190 students).

The closest other public school is Breakthrough Charter School, roughly 1.7 miles away. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Francis Marion School at 9th of 9; the average score across the group is 38.4%.

The campus sits in an outlying setting.

Trend over the last 7 years. Francis Marion School's enrollment has shrank 42% since 2018, when it stood at 707 (now 413). The student-to-teacher ratio rose from 14.9:1 in 2018 to 17.6:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, the feed for Francis Marion School typically covers school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.