In the 2024-25 school year, Tolbert Elementary School reported an enrollment of 14 African American students, representing a 40% increase over the prior year, according to data from the Georgia Department of Education.
Total enrollment at Tolbert Elementary School reached 488 students during the 2024-25 school year. African American students accounted for 3% of the student body, the smallest percentage among all groups at the school.
Tolbert Elementary is part of Gordon County School District, which has its main office in Calhoun.
Sonoraville High School had the district’s highest count of African American students in the 2024-25 school year, with 21 enrolled.
A total of more than 1.7 million students were enrolled in public schools statewide in Georgia, as detailed in the Georgia Department of Education’s Fiscal Year 2026-1 report. The largest group was elementary students at 787,206 (45.9%), followed by high school with 539,092 (31.4%), and middle school with 388,733 (22.7%).
Chronic absenteeism continues to challenge Georgia schools after the pandemic, with 20.7% of students missing at least 10% of school days in 2024, Georgia Department of Education statistics show. In response, GaDOE began a statewide effort to improve attendance, including real-time attendance dashboards, a public awareness program, and increased support for high-need areas.
Georgia legislators in 2025 approved an update to school attendance laws that prohibits expulsion solely due to absenteeism. The legislation, passed that year, also introduces new reporting requirements and aligns with diploma programs offering alternative paths for students.
By 2026, the average student-to-teacher ratio in Georgia stood at about 14:1, better than the national average of 15:1.
| School Year | Total Enrollment | Total African American students | % of African American students |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-11 | 601 | 6 | 1% |
| 2011-12 | 598 | 5 | 1% |
| 2012-13 | 558 | 5 | 1% |
| 2013-14 | 568 | 5 | 1% |
| 2014-15 | 556 | 11 | 2% |
| 2015-16 | 539 | 10 | 2% |
| 2016-17 | 505 | 10 | 2% |
| 2017-18 | 501 | 5 | 1% |
| 2018-19 | 516 | 10 | 2% |
| 2019-20 | 449 | 4 | 1% |
| 2020-21 | 439 | 8 | 2% |
| 2021-22 | 452 | 9 | 2% |
| 2022-23 | 485 | 14 | 3% |
| 2023-24 | 516 | 10 | 2% |
| 2024-25 | 488 | 14 | 3% |
Information in this article was gathered from the Georgia Department of Education. To access the original source data, visit here.
