Our System

The Albertville City School System became its own school system in the fall of 1985 with approximately 2,500 students in grades K-12. Since then, the system has experienced a steady increase each year to reach our current student population of almost 6,000 students in grades PreK-12. The system has seven schools:

• Albertville Kindergarten and Pre-K (AKPK)
• Albertville Primary School (Grades 1-2)
• Albertville Elementary School (Grades 3-4)
• Albertville Intermediate School (Grades 5-6)
• Albertville Middle School (Grades 7-8)
• Albertville High School (Grades 9-12)
• Albertville Innovation Academy (Grades 9-12)

Additionally, we offer the Albertville Virtual Academy for students enrolled in grades 9-12. The virtual curriculum features courses in mathematics, science, language arts, world languages, social studies as well as electives.

Opportunities

The opportunities are endless for students in Albertville City Schools. Whether it's athletics, fine arts, clubs, organizations, career tech programs, or STEM, there's a place for each and every student to thrive. 

The brand new Albertville Innovation Academy will open in the fall of 2024. AIA provides students with career-focused education through various technical programs, such as cybersecurity, health science and welding. It offers industry certifications, dual enrollment options and access to advanced facilities. Students can also participate in extracurricular activities and gain practical experience through industry partnerships. AIA ensures students receive a comprehensive education that prepares them for college or immediate entry into the workforce.

In 2024, more than $3.6 million of scholarships were awarded to our seniors, and we had a 93-percent graduation rate. Our high school offers a wide range of opportunities to its students, fostering both academic and extracurricular excellence. Students can engage in various academic programs, including dual enrollment and advanced placement. Additionally, there are numerous extracurricular activities, such as sports teams, fine arts programs and clubs like FBLA and HOSA.

We continue to be a leader when it comes to the fine arts. Music education is taught at all grade levels, and we have award-winning band and choral programs in grades 7-12. Art education is taught in grades 1-2 and 5-12. There are Aggie Theatre performances throughout the year for students to participate in grades K-12. We even have the Exceptional Aggies performing arts program for students in our special education program. 

Advanced classes are taught in grades 6-12. There is a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) emphasis at all grade levels, with STEM enrichment in kindergarten, STEM labs in grades 1-6, and a STEM bus for grades K-12. Gifted programming is provided in grades 3-6, with additional enrichment opportunities available at all grade levels. Keyboarding instruction is taught in grades 3-8. 

ACS uses audio enhancement technology to improve student's learning environments. Additionally, current technology is integrated into school programs daily through the use of 1:1 Chromebooks, using Schoology as our primary educational platform. Students also have access to school-based mental health services and student advocates through the Aggie Advocacy Center. There is also a school resource officer at every school. 

The Albertville City Schools Foundation continues to be a wonderful partner for Albertville City Schools. It was formed in 2001, and it supports and enhances school programs and teachers. It has provided over $200,000 in teacher grants, more than $50,000 in student scholarships, as well as providing additional support through the Ready to Learn fund that removes barriers for students, so they are ready to learn. 

Where do we want to improve?

• We want to improve our reading and math standardized test scores. Currently, these reflect a strong need for intensive interventions and focus on core curriculum. 
• We have recognized a need for development and early literacy programs for families to increase school readiness. 
• We want to increase our college and career readiness rate to align with our graduation rate.
• We need to improve teacher recruitment and retention initiatives.
• We must increase communication between all stakeholder groups through both internal and external public relations plans.  

Area Demographics

Albertville sits in the heart of Sand Mountain in rural North Alabama. With a population of 22,386 at the 2020 Census, it is the largest city in Marshall County.

At that time, 57.27-percent of the population was made up of persons identified as White (non-Hispanic), 28-percent of Hispanic/Latino origin, 4.6-percent as Black/African-American, and 4.1-percent Asian, Multi-Racial, or other. The median household income for Albertville in 2020 was $$39,882. The median housing value in Albertville was $168,826. You can find more demographic data about Albertville by visiting the City of Albertville website.

2021 Student Demographics

2021 student demographic data for the school system indicated that 54-percent of our students are of Hispanic ethnicity, 33-percent identified as White (non-Hispanic), 7-percent identified as two or more races, and 5-percent as Black. Student demographics show that our Hispanic numbers have trended steadily upward each year since an influx of families coming from mostly Spanish-speaking countries began in the mid-to-late 1990’s. More than 250 of our students' first language is not English, and we continue to experience a large number of EL1 students, which means this is their first year in U.S. schools. Currently, we have 293 students identified as Immigrants, which means they were not born in the United States and have less than three years of school in the U.S. We have a significant number of students (271 students or 4.58%) identified as Migrant, which means means they or their families work in an identified seasonal occupation and have made a qualifying move within the last 36 months. Our overall English Learner (EL) student population is 1438 students, or 24.32-percent of our total school enrollment. 

Given the ongoing demographic shift of our student population, we have identified unique challenges and opportunities for growth based on the changing needs of our students. We continue to develop and adapt our systemwide EL Plan to meet the needs of students whose first language is not English and who are not yet proficient in English. Because of the large percentage of students who are in this category, we need specific interventions and accommodations to address their needs and have allocated resources to address these areas of support. 

EL Support 

The Albertville City School System provides support to English Learner (EL) students for the purpose of increasing English language proficiency while providing a pathway for earning a high school diploma. All classroom teachers are supported by the system EL Instructional Coach with training on best practices for providing accommodation for instruction based on each EL student’s level of English language proficiency. ELLevation is provided for all teachers to assist in the data collection and monitoring of EL students and as a resource for appropriate instructional strategies. Each school employs at least one EL teacher to provide small group intervention services to newcomers and EL students identified as most at-risk based on available data. Bilingual aides assist school staff in communication with EL students and parents to reduce the impact of any language barriers and help parents to understand the support their child receives. Professional development opportunities are provided for school staff to increase the knowledge-base of available support for the EL Program. 

Literacy Act/Literacy Support 

The Albertville City School System provides support to our schools, teachers, students, and families as we prepare students to read at grade level by the end of their third-grade year as required by the Alabama Literacy Act (HB 388). All of our kindergarten-fourth grade teachers have completed 30 hours of intensive training in multi-sensory literacy strategies through IMSE Orton-Gillingham (OG) training. In accordance with ALA requirements, every K-3 teacher has completed or is in the process of completing 200 hours of the science of reading training through LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading & Spelling). We employ Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) reading specialists who provide coaching and direct support to classroom teachers in kindergarten through fourth grade, as well as a reading specialist for grades 5-6. We also employ a kindergarten through third grade literacy specialist supplement to oversee Literacy Act implementation, and a K-12 literacy coach to ensure vertical alignment. These literacy specialists guide teachers in providing high-quality direct instruction in early literacy and assist teachers in designing timely, research-based interventions when students struggle. 

Our teacher teams design Student Reading Improvement Plans (SRIPs) for any student with a consistent reading deficiency and work with families to augment support in reading until any skill gaps are closed. Due to the high numbers of students who are not proficient in reading skills in grades K-6, our system has invested a large amount of resources into providing pull-out Tier 3 intervention teachers for students who are not reaching benchmarks in reading. We have also developed summer camps that provide transportation, meals, and intensive reading intervention for students who are not progressing in literacy/reading at grade level in grades kindergarten through third grade. We recognize the urgency of preparing our students to read at grade level by the end of third grade, and we are making every effort to meet the needs of our students to accomplish this important goal.