Alabama’s public high school graduation rate tied its all-time high in 2024, while the Class of 2024 also set a new record for the percentage of graduates designated ready for college and career, according to new data released by the Alabama Department of Education.

Among 2024’s senior class, 88% had earned a college and career-ready (CCR) designation, a jump of 4 percentage points over the rate for the Class of 2023. That progress also narrows the gap between the graduation and CCR rates to 4 percentage points, the smallest gap ever.

Printable PDF available here.

Alabama’s high school graduation rate has been rising since 2012, when the state set a goal that 90% of ninth graders would persist and graduate four years later. As the state’s public schools made progress toward and ultimately achieved that goal, policymakers focused on the gap between the graduation and CCR rates. Though more students were graduating, many weren’t leaving with the credentials to prove they were ready to enter college or the workforce.

In 2023, the Alabama Legislature passed a law requiring that by Spring of 2026, all graduates will have to have earned a CCR designation in order to receive a diploma. Schools have been moving toward that goal. In 2024, over 50 high schools reported a 100% graduation rate, and more than 40 reported a 100% college and career readiness rate.

Multiple Ways to Demonstrate College and Career Readiness

The Class of 2024 produced a jump in the on-time graduation rate and in multiple categories of college and career readiness.

School systems and high schools have different approaches to providing students with pathways to the CCR designation. Academic magnet schools and affluent suburban systems have higher percentages of students scoring college-ready on the ACT or by earning a qualifying score (3 or above) on an Advanced Placement test. Advanced Placement (AP) courses are college-level courses taught by high school faculty. International Baccalaureate (IB) courses are similar and also count toward CCR. Other schools, usually cooperating with the local community college, may give most students access to college courses. Many schools encourage enrollment in career technical education courses and reach over 90 percent of students through such offerings. Successful entry into the military and completing an approved youth apprenticeship is also an option.

Career Technical Education

More students are participating in career technical education courses, high school courses linked to career skills and training. The number and percentage of students demonstrating college and career readiness through completing a course in career technical education and earning an industry-recognized credential rose to 24,535, up from 21,640 in 2023. In the class of 2024, 47% of students earned a credential that should be recognized as valuable to a prospective employer, a 6-percentage point increase. 

Dual Enrollment

The number and percentage of students earning college credit, mostly through dual enrollment at a community college, also rose substantially from 21% of students in 2023 to 26% for the Class of 2024. Statewide, 13,891 students had earned credit through successfully completing a college course during high school, an increase of over 2,500 from the Class of 2023.

ACT

The percentage of Alabama public high school graduates earning a benchmark score on the ACT rose to 42%, up from 40% in 2023. ACT, the standardized test that predicts student readiness for college-level coursework, is given to all high school juniors. Scores in Alabama and nationwide dropped during and following the pandemic. In Alabama, performance is improving, though still below pre-pandemic highs. A full exploration of the Alabama ACT scores can be accessed in PARCA’s previous post, Alabama High School Class of 2024 Improves on ACT.

WorkKeys

ACT also produces a second standardized test, WorkKeys, through which students can demonstrate college and career readiness. WorkKeys is designed to test reading and math skills as they are applied in the workplace. WorkKeys is given to seniors and is optional. Students who score high enough on WorkKeys to earn a silver, gold, or platinum certification are considered adequately prepared to enter the workforce.

Some employers use WorkKeys as a factor in hiring decisions. The visualization below allows you to explore WorkKeys results in terms of certificates earned and trends in the number of students tested. However, bear in mind that different schools use the test differently and give it selectively, so comparisons between schools and systems can be misleading.

Explore Further

Using the tabs and menus in the visualization tools, you can explore results for your local system or school. For best results, use the full screen option to display the visualization. That button can be found on the bottom right of the visualization, next to the share button.

Bear in mind that some schools may have college—and career-ready rates that exceed graduation rates. This occurs when more seniors achieve one of the measures of college and career readiness than earn a diploma.

New population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau place Mobile as the state’s second-largest city, behind booming Huntsville and ahead of Birmingham and Montgomery, both of which saw population declines according to the most recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Mobile’s new status takes into account the city’s 2023 annexations of neighborhoods in Mobile County that were expected to add about 20,000 to the city’s population. According to revised Census estimates, the city jumped from less than 190,000 before 2020 to almost 210,000, pushing it well ahead of Birmingham which, for 2024, had an estimated population of 196,818.

Printable PDF available here.

However, despite its annexation bump, Census estimates show Mobile is still losing population, dropping by over 500 over the past year to an estimated 201,367. Birmingham and Montgomery are also continuing to see population declines. If current trends prevail, the three cities seem destined to continue jockeying back and forth. Currently, the population estimates have Birmingham in third, just in front of Montgomery, at 195,818.

The biggest surprise of the estimates was the small Jefferson County hamlet of Brookside, which had the highest population growth rate of any municipality in the state at 13.2%. The town added 158 residents, bringing its total to 1,357 residents. The town has a new neighborhood under construction that appears to be drawing new residents. Small towns and cities around Huntsville and in Shelby and St. Clair counties, outside of Birmingham, saw higher rates of growth in percentage terms, as did suburban cities around Montgomery. Small towns in Wiregrass surrounding Dothan and Enterprise also showed growth in percentage terms. And several Baldwin County communities ranked near the top in terms of percentage growth.

In terms of growth in numbers, the city of Huntsville is the state champ, drawing in another 4,174 new residents in 2024. The City of Madison, Huntsville’s suburban neighbor, added 3,007, ranking third in the state in numeric growth, and Athens, which also borders Huntsville, added 1,641, ranking fourth.

The City of Foley in Baldwin County grew by 3,012, ranking second in the state in numeric terms and tying for second in percentage growth at 12%. Foley’s fellow Baldwin County city of Loxley also grew 12%. Fairhope added 1,011 according to the estimates, ranking 8th in the state. Gulf Shores and Daphne also ranked in the state’s top 20 in the number of residents added.

Cross state rivals Tuscaloosa and Auburn continue to grow with Auburn adding 1,310 to edge out Tuscaloosa’s gain of 1,272 new residents. Auburn also has the secret weapon of Opelika next door, which added 1,313 new residents in 2024. That far outpaces Northport which grew by 280. Together, Tuscaloosa and Northport have about 150,00 residents compared to Auburn and Opelika’s 120,000.

The sharp drop in overdose deaths in 2024, both nationally and in Jefferson County, wasn’t an accident, according to members of the task force that works to combat the epidemic of drug-related deaths. Instead, it resulted from public policy changes and the geographically targeted deployment of resources.

Figure 1. Trends in Accidental Drug and Opioid Overdose Deaths in Jefferson County, 2012-2024. Source: Jefferson County Coroner’s Office data.

Printable PDF available here.

Thanks to those interventions, Jefferson County saw its first decline in overdose deaths since 2018. According to data from the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office, drug overdose deaths peaked in the county in 2023, with 483 accidental drug-related deaths. That is more than double the number of people who died by homicide (197) in Jefferson County in 2023. And it is more than triple the number of overdose deaths Jefferson County experienced in 2012.

Accidental overdose deaths from opioids began rising in the 1990s with the proliferation of prescription pills. That was followed by a resurgence in heroin use, which was in turn followed by the arrival of fentanyl, an extremely potent synthetic opioid. Beginning in 2020, traffic fentanyl surged into Jefferson County, resulting in a skyrocketing death toll from overdoses.

In Jefferson County, the arrival of fentanyl hit the Black community especially hard. Historically, White deaths from drug overdoses had greatly outnumbered Blacks. But by 2023, Black overdose deaths eclipsed whites.

Figure 2. Trends in Overdose Deaths By Race, Jefferson County. Source: Jefferson County Coroner’s Office data.

Health officials nationally and in Alabama have been working to catch up with the epidemic. In 2017, Governor Kay Ivey established the Alabama Opioid Overdose and Addiction Council, which pulled together the state departments of Public Health and Mental Health, local health providers, and a broad coalition of health care providers, drug treatment non-profits, and first responders. Much of the coordinating and data-gathering work has been funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its Overdose Data to Action grant program. According to the CDC, factors driving the decline in overdose deaths include the “widespread, data-driven distribution of naloxone, which is a life-saving medication that can reverse an overdose; better access to evidence-based treatment for substance use disorders; shifts in the illegal drug supply; a resumption of prevention and response after pandemic-related disruptions; and continued investments in prevention and response programs like CDC’s flagship Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) program.”

OD2A funding to the Alabama Department of Public Health and the Jefferson County Department of Health has supported the creation of a data-gathering and sharing program that is providing real-time information about where overdoses are occurring. Emergency medical services providers and hospitals are reporting overdose encounters as they happen, allowing public health officials to zero in on communities and even specific neighborhoods where overdoses are on the rise. Jefferson County’s Health Department has worked with the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office, health care providers, and researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and other local agencies to gather, analyze, and act on the data.

With the data mapped and analyzed, partners from the healthcare and treatment community, first responders, and public health officials routinely meet to discuss patterns and develop a concerted approach to overdose prevention. Figure 3 shows the concentration of overdose deaths by zip code, for the peak year, 2023. Using the slider and directional arrows, you can cycle through years of data to see the rising numbers and shifting geographic concentration.

Figure 3. Mapping Overdose Deaths By Zip Code, by Year. Source: Jefferson County Coroner’s Office data.

Policy changes identified and lobbied for by the Overdose and Addiction Council set the stage for the interventions that appear to be driving down deaths. First, in June of 2022, the Alabama Legislature decriminalized Fentanyl test strips. Before the change, the strips that allow the detection of potentially fatal levels of the drug were considered drug paraphernalia, discouraging their availability and use.  Then, in March 2023, naloxone was made an over-the-counter medication, increasing access to the overdose-reversing treatment and allowing for distribution in the community.

In the wake of the changes and with an influx of funding from both federal and state opioid settlement money, a coalition of groups pushed out resources and training to make the life-saving resources available. The Alabama Department of Mental Health significantly increased naloxone distribution, distributing 46,482 kits at Back-to-School events, End Addiction Walks, and conferences and trainings for treatment providers serving high-risk individuals, local and rural law enforcement officers, and first responders. JCDH has an online Naloxone education portal on its website, www.jcdh.org, and sends Naloxone Kits and Fentanyl Test Strips by mail at no cost to people who request the kits through the website. In addition, JCDH provides both products through dispensing boxes at its health centers and at distribution boxes in other community locations.  JCDH also partners with local EMS, police, fire and rescue, and some independent pharmacies to provide the supplies as well.

Using Jefferson County Coroner’s data, the Jefferson County Health Department identified particular neighborhoods where overdose deaths were on the rise. To counter the trend, the department found avenues to distribute free Naloxone and Fentanyl test strips. They also launched public information campaigns, advertising the dangers of the drugs and resources for treatment services, in some cases, displaying the messages on the public transit buses that served the affected areas.

Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. David Hicks applauded the cooperation and the progress but stressed the need to sustain the effort.

“As we continue to address the challenges posed by overdose deaths in our community, it is crucial to recognize the progress we have made and the work that still lies ahead,” Hicks said. “Our collective efforts in prevention, education, and treatment are making a difference, but we must remain vigilant and committed to saving lives. Together, we can build a healthier and safer Jefferson County.”

PARCA is involved in an effort to encourage similar efforts to share, analyze, and act on data. The Birmingham-Jefferson County Justice Governance Partnership brings together county government, municipalities, multiple law enforcement agencies, schools, health providers, non-profits, and community groups to develop a common understanding and cooperative solutions to community challenges. For more information, visit the BJC-JGP website.

According to the latest estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, Jefferson and Mobile counties grew, and Montgomery narrowed its population losses in 2024 thanks to an increase in international migration. International immigration also padded growth in Madison and Baldwin Counties, though growth there was largely driven by domestic migration—new residents moving in from other counties and states.

Printable PDF available here

The latest Census Bureau data provides population estimates for counties and metropolitan areas as of July 1, 2024, and includes underlying estimates of net change due to births, deaths, and movement of residents between counties, states, and other countries. A PARCA analysis of the data finds that:

• Considering births, deaths, and both domestic and international migration, 41 of 67 Alabama counties saw population growth.
• In 54 of Alabama’s 67 counties, deaths exceeded births.
• 26 counties lost population, all rural and mostly in Central Alabama’s Black Belt.
• 42 counties experienced a net gain of residents moving in from other counties or other states.
• 60 counties saw net positive growth from international migration.
• Without that international inflow, 30 of Alabama’s 67 counties would have lost population in 2024.

Natural change, births vs. deaths, provides a backdrop for population growth or decline, and in most Alabama counties, natural change has been negative for several years now. That trend began during the Covid-19 pandemic, but continues, though to a lesser degree. As the large Baby Boom generation ages and experiences higher rates of mortality, the number of deaths increases. Meanwhile, younger generations are having fewer children. The two factors combined create a backdrop of population decline through natural change.

There are exceptions. Fifteen counties are still gaining population through natural increase. Those counties tend to be those where young people make up a disproportionate share of the population: suburban counties and counties with universities. Counties with high percentages of Hispanic residents, like Marshall and Franklin counties, tend to have higher birth rates, offsetting the high death rates typical of rural counties.

High Growth Counties

The two Alabama counties that saw the most population growth—Madison, home to Huntsville, and coastal Baldwin County—each saw more than 6,500 additional residents move in from other counties or states while also drawing some international migrants.

Limestone, the fastest-growing county in percentage terms, added over 4,000 residents through domestic migration but added very few international migrants.

Lee County drew evenly from both sources, adding about 1,500 residents from other counties or states and a similar amount from abroad. Rounding out the top five, Shelby County added from both sources as well, with an estimated 950 net international arrivals and 720 new residents from other counties and states.

Migration

Alabama has continued net positive growth from domestic migration people moving in from other states. Within the state, domestic migration was positive in all counties bordering Tennessee and Florida, and in nine of 11 counties bordering Georgia. Meanwhile, only three of the 10 counties bordering Mississippi experienced a net gain.

Central counties of the larger metropolitan areas tend to see an outflow of population to the surrounding suburban counties. This is true for Jefferson, Montgomery, and Mobile counties. For all three of those countries, an increase in international immigration helped offset those domestic losses.

Metro Areas

All of the state’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) experienced positive population growth. MSAs are counties or groups of counties in which the economies are connected through employment and commuting patterns. The Birmingham MSA’s population increased by over 6,000 residents to nearly 1.2 million. That’s the strongest growth in several years. Over half of those net new residents were the result of international immigration.

Nationally, international immigration was the largest driver of population increase in large metropolitan areas like New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Houston, and Dallas. However, border crossings dropped sharply in the first part of 2024 and have continued to decline. If trends hold, international in-migration will diminish as a factor driving population change in subsequent years.

Alabama’s 2024 high school graduates posted improved performance on the ACT compared to prior years, continuing a positive trend at a time when scores have continued to drift down nationally. The ACT is a standardized test designed to measure a student’s readiness to succeed academically in college.

Printable PDF available here.

Nationally, the composite score was down again and so were scores in all four subjects. Though Alabama’s improvement was slight, it was across the board applying to the four tested subjects.

The percentage of Alabama students achieving benchmark scores also moved up in all four subjects and the percentage of students that benchmarked in all four subjects increased as well. ACT data from prior graduating classes shows that 84% of students who have met all four benchmarks graduate with postsecondary degrees within six years.

In Alabama, the composite scores for Asians, Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics all ticked up. Economically disadvantaged students posted improved scores, as well. One exception to the upward trend was a decrease in the percentage of nonpoverty students achieving the benchmark in English, from 60.2% to 59.6%. Economically disadvantaged students improved in English by 27%, exceeding the benchmark in English, which was 25.3% in 2023.

Still, scores are still well behind where they were pre-pandemic. And both in the state and nationally, scores are well behind 2017, which was the peak of performance. Some academic research links the decline to lingering effects of the Great Recession, which led to cuts in education spending. ACT scores peaked in 2007.

The national average composite score was 19.4 in 2024 (down from 19.5 in 2023). That’s higher than Alabama’s public school average of 17.85. However, the two scores should not be compared. Alabama is one of 9 states that tests all high school students, whether they are college-bound or not. In much of the country, only students applying to a four-year college take the ACT. Despite progress, Alabama high school graduates still have room to improve compared to other states where a comparable percentage of students are tested.

Alabama gives the test to all high school juniors. It serves as a gauge of academic performance for schools. Students who earn a benchmark score in at least one of the four subjects qualify as college—and career-ready, one of ten options for achieving that designation. Students must meet one of those ten college—and career-readiness markers in order to graduate.

During the pandemic, the number of test takers dropped, and the importance of the ACT was somewhat diminished as many schools made the test-optional for admission. However, more recently, many colleges have returned to requiring the test.

Using the tabs and menus, you can explore the data in various ways, including comparing system and school-level results. It’s important to remember that ACT scores tend to correlate with economic advantages and disadvantages. The scatterplot chart below arrays systems by the percentage of economically disadvantaged students from the left to right. The systems with the lowest percentages of economically disadvantaged students are on the right. Systems are positioned vertically based on their average composite score. The higher the circle, the higher the score. The line that slants up from left to right traces a correlation between test scores that rise as the percentage of economic disadvantage declines. The size of each system’s circle represents the enrollment of the system.

When systems are clustered close along that line, that indicates there is a strong correlation between the two values. Systems that fall above the line of prediction are exceeding expectations. An example is the Piedmont City School system. In 2024, 65% of students in that system qualified for a free school lunch due to their family income level. And yet the average scale score for Piedmont students far exceeded many school systems where economic disadvantage rates are lower.

Alabama public school fourth graders are scoring higher in both reading and math than they did prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. Alabama and Louisiana are the only two states where that is true, according to an analysis of the results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Printable PDF available here.

In fact, in both reading and math, Alabama fourth graders scored close to the national average in 2024. That’s a remarkable turnaround from 2019, when Alabama 4th graders ranked at or near the bottom in both subjects. Only three states posted more improvement in 4th-grade math than Alabama in 2024.

Alabama has shown more growth in 4^th grade math than any other state since 2019. The vast majority of states have lost ground. Alabama and Louisiana are the only states in which 4th-grade reading performance is higher than in 2019.

NAEP scores are based on standardized tests taken by a sample of students in every state. NAEP scores are known as the nation’s report card. In 2024, Alabama 4^th graders’ performance ranked 33^rd in reading and 31^st in math.

Alabama has made large and targeted investments in early grades reading and math instruction, retraining teachers in research-based instructional techniques, stocking schools with dedicated reading and math coaches, and sending higher levels of support and resources to schools that have struggled academically. Results indicate that the investments may be paying off. Considering the timing and nature of the investment, results should continue to improve if results are sustained. The state is still increasing the percentage of its elementary teachers and administrators who have received reading instruction training. Additionally, the Alabama Literacy Act has highlighted the importance of learning to read since students are required to have demonstrated grade-level reading in order to be promoted to fourth grade. In Math, waves of instructional coaches authorized by the Alabama Numeracy Act continue to be trained and deployed.

The NAEP news is not all positive. Alabama’s progress toward the national average is partly due to declining performance in other states. The national average scale score is down in both subjects and both grades compared to 2019, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2024, scores were down again, except for 4th-grade math, where there was an improvement nationally.

8th Grade Results

For 8th grade, the news was not good for the nation or for Alabama. And Alabama 8^th graders fared poorly, performing worse in 2024 in both subjects. Compared to other states, Alabama 8th graders ranked No. 46 in reading and 48 in math.

In both reading and math Alabama 8^th graders are scoring lower than Alabama 8^th graders did in the early years of the 21^st Century, giving up gains that had been made over the past decade.

Alabama still trails most Southeastern states in both subjects and both grades. That includes Mississippi, where students outscored Alabama students in both grades and both subjects.

According to the 4th grade results, Alabama made gains not only in the percentage of students reaching the basic level and the proficient level but also in the percentage of students scoring at the advanced level.

Unfortunately, the trend is running in the opposite direction for 8th graders, with smaller percentages of students scoring at the proficient or advanced level.

Nationally and in Alabama, there remains a stubborn score gap between racial and ethnic subgroups of students. Among Alabama fourth graders, white students exceeded the national average for the first time in both subjects. Black fourth graders are also closing the gap with the national average for black students in both subjects. Hispanic students made gains toward the national Hispanic average in math but saw a drop in reading performance.

Using the menu options, you can explore the data further, toggling between grades and subjects to examine changes by year in Alabama and other states and relative ranks among states.

Each year, PARCA uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of State and Local Finances to compare Alabama’s tax collections to the other 50 states. The most recent data comes from the 2022 Fiscal Year. 

Key Findings from this year’s report, How Alabama Taxes Compare, 2024:

• In FY 2022, adjusted for population, Alabama collected less in state and local taxes than all but one other state, Tennessee. 

• Alabama’s per capita property tax collections are the lowest in the nation. That helps owners of homes, farms, and timberland but creates a revenue deficit, leaving state and local governments with less to spend on providing government services such as education, health, and public safety. 

• Alabama’s state and local sales tax rates are among the highest in the U.S., compensating for low property taxes.  

• Alabama’s income tax does not provide the balancing effect income taxes in other states do. Low-income workers begin paying taxes at a lower threshold than any other state. At the other end of the spectrum, Alabama is the only state that allows a full deduction for federal income taxes paid, a tax break that benefits high-income earners. 

Alabama’s rankings in per capita state and local tax collections were generally consistent with rankings in prior years.  

For most of the past thirty years, Alabama has consistently ranked last in the Southeast and last in the U.S. in terms of per capita tax collections. In recent years, Alabama has traded that last-place spot back and forth with Tennessee, thanks to tax-cutting measures in that state. This year, according to the Census survey, Tennessee returned to the bottom spot, collecting $4 less per capita than Alabama. Tennessee’s income tax on dividends continues to decrease as the state phases it out.

Read the full report below or click the link here.

Alabama’s population increased by more than 40,000, between July 2023 and July 2024, reaching a total of 5,157,699, according to estimates issued in December by the U.S. Census Bureau. Alabama ranked 22nd in percentage population increase and No. 24 in numeric population change.

Printable PDF available here.

The number of new Alabama residents arriving from other states (26,028) was down somewhat compared to 2023, part of a national trend of slowing domestic migration. However, international immigration increased over the same period, bringing 15,763 new residents from abroad into the state.

When it comes to natural population change in Alabama’s resident population, deaths exceeded births in 2024, according to the estimates. That is a trend that began in 2020 with the arrival of Covid-19 and has persisted thanks to an aging population and a smaller rising generation producing few babies.

Due to a range of negative health indicators, Alabama’s resident population has a shorter life expectancy than other states, resulting in a higher death rate. Alabama’s birth rate is higher than the U.S. average, but trails states with younger populations and higher levels of international immigration, both of which are associated with more births.

Nationally, international immigration drove population change with 2.8 million new residents coming to the U.S. from abroad during the 2024 estimate period. The highest number of international migrants arrived in Florida (411,322), California (361,057) and Texas (319,569). Alabama has one of lowest rates of international in-migration in the U.S. (ranking No. 43). Despite that, the state did see an increase in new arrivals compared to 2023, when about 13,000 international immigrants arrived. Both the 2023 and 2024 totals for international immigration are about double the average number of arrivals between 2010 and 2020. And far exceed the levels seen during the first Trump administration and the record lows during the pandemic.

The Southeastern U.S. is one of the fastest-growing regions in the U.S. Alabama ranks in the middle of pack of Southeastern states when it comes to population growth, outpacing Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Kentucky, but well behind the rates of growth seen in Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Alabama tax revenues continue to trend toward more normal patterns after a wild post-pandemic ride. The Education Trust Fund, powered by state income and sales taxes, grew modestly, collecting 2.2% more than the previous year. Meanwhile, growth in the General Fund cooled but still posted an unusually high increase of 7%, boosted by high interest earned on state deposits and continued growth in tax revenue from online sales, insurance, and property taxes.

The General Fund (GF) supports non-education spending, while the Education Trust Fund (ETF) supports spending on K-12 schools, colleges and universities. From FY 2021 through FY 2023, the two funds saw unusual surges of growth related to post-pandemic economic conditions and shifting patterns of consumption.

In 2024, the GF maintained its winning streak. Thanks to budget surpluses, replenished stockpiles of rainy day reserves, and federal relief and investment funds deposited in state accounts, Alabama has a growing body of cash in its accounts, which earn interest. At the same time, interest rates have stayed high as the Federal Reserve tries to cool inflation. As a result, the state revenues from interest grew by more than $150 million, up to $557 million.

Scroll below or click this link to continue reading PARCA’s latest report, Alabama State Tax Collections, 2024: Increases, Decreases and Trends in the Revenue Supporting the State Government.

Alabama student performance in English Language Arts improved significantly in 2024, with the largest spike coming in third grade as the Alabama Literacy Act came into full effect. That’s according to a PARCA analysis of results of the Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program (ACAP), the state’s suite of standardized tests for students in grades 3-8. ELA performance improved at every grade level.

The percentage of third graders who scored proficient on the ELA test climbed from 53% in 2023 to 62% in 2024, an increase in the ELA proficiency rate for third graders of 9 percentage points. It’s unusual for performance to jump that much from one year to the next. Multiple factors likely contributed: the new requirement that students pass the third-grade reading test to be promoted to fourth, the compounding effect of the statewide, multi-year effort to improve early grades reading instruction, and the greater distance in time since Covid-19 disruptions to schooling.

Figure 2. ACAP Proficiency by year, by grade by subject

Math and Science

The percentage of students scoring proficient in math was up in every grade but third, but the gains were more incremental. In third grade, 42.2% of students scored proficient in 2024 compared to 43.6% in 2023. Meanwhile, fourth and fifth graders both posted three percentage point increases in proficiency compared to the fourth and fifth graders of 2023. The state’s roll out of its math improvement plan is at an earlier stage than the literacy plan. The Alabama Numeracy Act, which passed the Legislature in 2022, mimicked many of the approaches employed by the Alabama Literacy Act, including deploying coaches to elementary schools to help classroom teachers improve early-grades math instruction. Those interventions, backed by increased investments, are ramping up.

In science, the percentage of fourth graders scoring proficient climbed from 41% to nearly 44.5%, but the percentage of eighth graders scoring proficient in science declined from 41.1% of eighth graders in 2023 to 38.7% proficient in 2024.

Subgroup Performance

Proficiency was up across all student subpopulations, with economically disadvantaged students posting the highest percentage point increases. Across all subjects and grades, economically disadvantaged students’ proficiency increased by six percentage points. Black student proficiency climbed by 3.4 percentage points, a bigger percentage gain than White students. White student proficiency increased by 2.1 percentage points. Hispanic proficiency increased by one percentage point.

Still, the gaps between Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics remain wide, with White grade-level proficiency rates in the range of 20 percentage points higher in ELA and Math. Meanwhile, Asian students achieve proficiency rates that are 15 percentage points or more higher than Whites.

Figure 3. ACAP Proficiency by subgroup, by year. Use menus to focus on subject or grade.

Why would ELA scores have jumped?

According to State Department officials, no changes were made to the grading or contents of the third-grade ELA tests that would have influenced the proficiency gains. The State Department of Education did approve a change to the score threshold for reading “sufficiency,” which serves as the bar a third-grade student has to clear to demonstrate readiness to move to the fourth grade. However, that change did not affect the definition of proficiency in English Language Arts.

One obvious explanation for the rise is that this year’s third-grade ACAP ELA test really mattered. A subset of questions on the third-grade test constituted a test of grade-level reading sufficiency. If third graders didn’t score above the sufficiency line, they were in danger of being required to repeat the third grade.

Even though the Alabama Literacy Act was passed in 2019, that retention provision was suspended in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. But as of this spring, teachers, parents, and students knew that the students had to clear the bar. Even though that sufficiency threshold was lower than the proficiency bar, the higher stakes likely increased attention and effort on the third-grade ELA test as a whole.

Another factor could be that this year’s third graders had less disruption to learning from the Covid-19 pandemic. Students taking the test in 2024 missed the end of Pre-K and had a disrupted kindergarten year due to Covid. However, grades 1-3, which are focused on learning to read, were normal.

Finally, and fundamentally, the rise in third-grade ELA scores and ELA scores across the board indicates that the state’s investment in reading instruction is paying off. The passage of the Literacy Act brought with it a renewed investment in early grades reading instruction. Funding for the Alabama Reading Initiative has more than doubled to over $100 million annually. That spending supported:

• Thousands of teachers trained or retrained in reading instruction grounded in the “science of reading. “
• Every school with grades K-3 having a dedicated reading coach, focused exclusively on grades K-3, working with teachers to improve reading instruction.
• A corps of state-trained reading specialists deployed to support teachers and coaches, particularly in struggling schools.
• Schools identifying struggling readers as early as Kindergarten, informing parents, and developing reading intervention plans to bring the child to reading sufficiency.
• Struggling students screened for learning challenges and receiving the support of specialists.

A Growing Percentage of Students Reaching The Top Performance Level

Some observers worried that the shift in emphasis to the science of reading approach, which includes an emphasis on phonics, might help students who were having problems learning to read, but it might slow progress for students who picked up reading skills more readily. However, ACAP results show strong growth in the percentage of third-grade students who are exceeding grade level proficiency, scoring at Level 4 (the portion of the bar chart below that is shaded dark green.) Up to 20% of third-grade students are now in that highest performance level compared to 12% that fell into that group in 2021.

The portion of the bar in light green, Level 2, indicates the percentage of students meeting grade-level expectations, which has grown from 39% to 42%.

The group that has shrunk the most is those approaching grade level but scoring below the threshold: 40% of 3rd graders fell into that category in 2021, but only 27% did in 2024.

However, the percentage of students well below grade level has remained stubbornly low at around 10 percent. 2024’s scores represent progress from 2023, when 14% of students fell into Level 1. However, looking back to 2021 and 2022 scores, the percentage of students in that lowest level has remained consistent.

Figure 4. Percentage of Students at Each Level of Performance on ACAP. Students scoring at Level 3 or 4 are considered on or above grade level.

Scores Considered in Context

Performance comparisons between school systems and schools can provide significant insight. Learning from high-performing districts can help spur the spread of best practices. However, when making comparisons, it is important to consider performance in the context of the demographics of the schools and systems.

Economically disadvantaged students tend, on average, to score lower than students from more affluent homes. The greater the share of economically disadvantaged students at a school or in a system, the greater the resources and efforts needed to help all students reach high percentage levels of proficiency.

Figure 5 places school systems on a scatterplot graph based on two characteristics: systems with the highest percentage of poverty are positioned to the left with diminishing levels of economic disadvantage as you move right. The vertical axis represents the percentage of students scoring proficient or above—the higher the percentage of proficient students, the higher the position of the system on the chart.

The line in the middle is the line of prediction: the level of proficiency a system would be expected to achieve based on its level of economic disadvantage. Systems that land above the line are exceeding expectations. The chart allows comparisons of performance among systems that are similar in terms of economic makeup. The size of the circle representing the system corresponds to the overall enrollment of the system. The graph is selected to display a mashup of proficiency levels for all students, all grades, and all subjects. Using the menus on the right, a user can refine selections to look at selected systems, characteristics, grade levels and subjects.

Figure 5. Proficiency in the Context of Poverty, 2024

Using the tabs at the top of the visualization and the various menus available, users can explore the latest ACAP data from a variety of perspectives, from school level to grade level, by subject and grade. On the bottom right of the visualization is an option that allows the user to display the visualization in full-screen format. The visualization below is a school-level scatterplot graph depicting performance in the context of poverty. Like the results at the system level, the chart indicates that proficiency levels increase as the level of economic disadvantage decreases. However, the correlation is not as strong among schools, demonstrating that individual schools and teachers make a difference in outcomes, regardless of the economic background of the children in the classroom.