Zora Ellis Junior High School

Zora Ellis Junior High School is a cozy intermediate school in Talladega, Alabama, part of Talladega City. The school works with 213 students in grades 7 through 8. By comparison, Alabama's public schools average about 508 students each, so Zora Ellis Junior High School sits 58% leaner than that benchmark.

Zora Ellis Junior High School is one of 5 schools operated by Talladega City, a district that teaches 1,676 students overall.

On the student-mix side, Zora Ellis Junior High School shows that the largest single group is Black, at 73% of enrollment. Beyond that, the school logs 18% White, 7% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 30% Black, putting the school's mix considerably more Black than the area baseline.

On the resource side, Staff filings list 14 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 14.6:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 17.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Around 91% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. By comparison, Talladega County runs at roughly 62%, so the school's eligibility rate is above the surrounding baseline.

In the surrounding community, ACS estimates for Talladega County put the typical household earns roughly $57,776 per year, roughly 17% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 16% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Talladega County's 33 public schools (combined enrollment of about 10,973 students), Zora Ellis Junior High School is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is Evelyn D Houston Elementary School, roughly 1.0 miles away. 4 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius.

The campus sits in a town-center setting.

Over the past 6-year window. Over the past 6-year window, the student count decreased 22%: 274 students in 2018 compared to 213 in 2024. Over the same period, the White share declined from 27% to 18%. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 17.1:1 in 2018 to 15.7:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, posts here usually surface around sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.