Enrollment
279
Elementary
DISTRICT 470 · STATE 605
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 130012000054
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School
500 Whitehall Ter SW, Atlanta, GA 30312 · (404) 802-7950 · Fulton County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL279 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
12.0:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.6:1 · STATE 13.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
100%
279 students
DISTRICT 82% · STATE 74%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on published attendance-zone data from Atlanta Public Schools. Zones change; confirm enrollment with the district.
QUIET COMMUNITY
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START A DISCUSSIONTest scores
Georgia Milestones 2024-25 . % Proficient or DistinguishedEnglish Language Arts
15.8%
GA avg 40.1% . +3.0pp since 2021
Math
20.3%
GA avg 44.6% . +13.9pp since 2021
What this means: On the Georgia Milestones, Georgia's statewide test, about 16 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 20 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Georgia schools, those numbers are about 40 and 45. Reading and writing scores are up about 3 points since 2021, while math scores are up about 14 points.
Source: Georgia Milestones. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
19.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
25.7%
based on GA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-5.8pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 20% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 26% typical for Georgia schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Georgia's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
279
-102 (-27%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
12.0:1
was 13.1:1
% White
0%
was 0%
% Hispanic
3%
was 3%
% Black
95%
was 96%
% Asian
0%
was 0%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School is a K-5 school of low-enrollment scale in Atlanta, Georgia, overseen by Atlanta Public Schools, instructing 279 students in grades pre-K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 605 students per school, that is 54% below typical.
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School is one of 87 schools operated by Atlanta Public Schools, a district that educates 49,945 students overall.
On the student-mix side, Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School lists that nearly all students (95%) are Black; the rest looks like 3% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 43% Black, putting the school's mix noticeably more Black than the area baseline.
Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 23 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.0:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.3:1 average. Around 100% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is above Fulton County's rate of about 62%.
After controlling for student poverty, Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 25.7%; this one delivers 19.9%.
Zooming out to the county, census data for Fulton County shows the typical household earns roughly $95,292 per year, 59% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 8%. In all, Fulton County runs 205 public schools (combined enrollment of about 138,270 students), of which Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School is one.
Nearest neighbor: Charles L. Gideons Elementary School, around 0.8 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School ranks 4th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 20.5%.
The campus sits in a downtown setting.
Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School has contracted 27%, going from 381 students in 2018 to 279 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 13.1:1 in 2018 to 12.0:1 today.
On allk12, members of the Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School community share and discuss classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. The community welcomes input from current and former families.
Fulton County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
1,076,561
Census ACS
Median income
$95,292
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
59%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
205
138,270 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Atlanta Public Schools
- North Atlanta High SchoolHigh · 2,368 students
- Midtown High SchoolHigh · 1,696 students
- Willis A. Sutton Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,619 students
- Maynard Jackson High SchoolHigh · 1,549 students
- Benjamin E. Mays High SchoolHigh · 1,338 students
- Frederick Douglass High SchoolHigh · 1,296 students
Other schools in Atlanta
- Georgia Cyber Academy (Virtual)Combined · 9,952 students
- North Atlanta High SchoolHigh · 2,368 students
- Lakeside High SchoolHigh · 2,234 students
- Westlake High SchoolHigh · 2,056 students
- Riverwood International Charter SchoolHigh · 1,737 students
- Sequoyah Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,713 students
Nearby schools
- Charles L. Gideons Elementary School0.8 mi · 311
- Martin L. King Jr. Middle School1.2 mi · 879
- Wesley International Academy Charter1.2 mi · 776
- Herman J. Russell West End Academy1.2 mi · 342
- M. A. Jones Elementary School1.3 mi · 461
- Booker T. Washington High School1.4 mi · 856
Frequently asked questions
About Paul L. Dunbar Elementary SchoolHow large is Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School?
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School enrolls approximately 279 students in grades PK-05.
Is Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School have?
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School employs 23 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 12.0:1.
What is the student diversity at Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School?
Student demographics at Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School are roughly 3% Hispanic, 95% Black, 2% Two or more.
Is Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School public or private?
Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Atlanta Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.