Athens Reporter

There were 2,083 Black students enrolled in Barrow County school in the 2022-23 school year, 8% more than the previous year, according to reports from the Georgia Department of Education.

Data showed that Barrow County welcomed 14,303 students during the 2022-23 school year. Among them, Black students comprised 14.6% of the student body to be the third most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 16 schools in Barrow County, Apalachee High School recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 335 students.

While enrollment in Georgia inches closer to pre-pandemic levels, chronic absenteeism remains a serious challenge. In 2023, a significant portion of students (23%) missed 10% or more of their classes. Although this is slightly better than the peak of 25% in 2022, it's still nearly double the pre-pandemic rate of 13% recorded in 2019.

School name	% of Black Students	Total Black Students	Total enrollment
Winder Elementary School	22%	137	623
Kennedy Elementary School	20%	177	885
Yargo Elementary School	20%	172	864
Apalachee High School	18%	335	1,862
Haymon-Morris Middle School	18%	145	809
Westside Middle School	17%	126	742
Statham Elementary School	17%	124	735
Winder-Barrow High School	16%	272	1,705
Bear Creek Middle School	14%	94	676
Russell Middle School	12%	112	936
Barrow Arts and Sciences Academy	11%	113	1,030
Auburn Elementary School	10%	71	718
Holsenbeck Elementary School	9%	69	773
Bethlehem Elementary School	8%	61	773
Bramlett Elementary School	7%	43	625
County Line Elementary School	6%	32	547