Enrolling 10,400 students on 19 campuses, the Tuscaloosa City School is the best place to send your children if you want them to be competitive academically, artistically, and athletically in the 21st century.

People | Students | Programs | Facilities | Funding

People: Our Teachers Are Among The Best In Alabama

1. Of the 950 certified employees in the Tuscaloosa City School system, one-half have earned a Masters degree; 46 of our employees have gone on to earn an Education Specialist degree or AA certification and 20 received their Doctorate degrees.
2. Forty-seven Tuscaloosa City School teachers have met rigorous standards for certification by the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards.
3. Placing a special emphasis on the hiring of qualified personnel, the Board of Education has employed new teachers with averages of a GPA of 3.4 and years of teaching experience. Systemwide, 99 percent of the teachers have achieved the status of Highly Qualified as measured by federally mandated guidelines, and approximately 60 percent have advanced degrees.
4. In recent years, teachers and programs in the City Schools have been recognized with some of the most distinguished awards in the state and nation.
   • Northridge High School art teacher Richard Nowell was selected as the 2007 Visual Arts Educator
   • Westlawn Middle teacher Alice Russell and Rock Quarry teacher Melinda Leavelle were selected as Dance Educator of the Year in the Annual Druid Arts Awards
   • Rock Quarry lead speech-language pathologist Linda Ellis received the Loretta G. Brown Award from the State Speech and Hearing Association
   • Woodland Forrest teacher Suzanne Booth was named honorable mention in the USA TODAY 2006 All-USA Teacher Team Program
   • Tuscaloosa Middle School teacher Minda Paxton was selected one of the 16 district finalists in the Alabama Teacher of the Year Program
   • Northridge High teacher Patsy Lowery was inducted into the 2006-2007 Jacksonville State University Teacher Hall of Fame as the state secondary division winner
   • Verner Elementary received the 2006-2007 Honor Student Council Excellence Award from the National Association of Elementary School Principals
   • Tuscaloosa Center for Technology students won third place in the National SkillsUSA Television (Video) Production Championship
   • Other prestigious awards in recent years include
     • FBLA National Leadership Conference Organizational Behavior Award
     • All-State School Board Award
     • Destination Imagination 2006 State Championship
     • Alabama Scholastic Association (Scholar Bowl) district winners
     • Fulbright Teacher and Administrator Exchange Program
     • Local School Communicator of the Year by the Alabama School Communicators Association
     • Outstanding Contribution to Education Award by the Capstone Education Society
     • State Technical Education Program of the Year Award

Our Students Lead The Way In Scholarships And Recognition!

1. Seventy percent of Tuscaloosa City School graduates go on to two or four-year colleges and 25 percent enroll in vocational/technical schools.
2. Students from Central High School, Northridge High School and Paul W. Bryant High School earned more than 13 million dollars in scholarships during the 2006-2007 school year from some of America’s most outstanding public and private colleges and universities. Students were offered scholarships from an unparalleled number of institutions across the nation including Vanderbilt University, Boston University, Tulane University, Duke University, Emory University, and Princeton University as well as numerous scholarships to outstanding local and state institutions such as University of Alabama, Auburn University, Shelton State Community College and Stillman College.
3. Tuscaloosa City Schools leads the way in National Merit Scholars. In 2006-2007, four Northridge High School students and one Paul W. Bryant High School student were named National Merit Finalists, and eight students from these schools were selected as Commended Students.
4. Individuals and teams of students have made headlines for academic honors of all kinds, including:
   • The Television Production Program, taught by Mark Raines and Valencia Winston, at the Tuscaloosa Center for Technology won the state’s Technical Education Program of the Year award in 2004 and 2006. Raines won the Association for Career and Technical Education Outstanding New Career and Technical Teacher for Alabama in 2006 and in the Southeast Region in 2007. The TV Production Program has been honored by the Radio Shack Corporation, the Toyota International Teacher Program, USA-Today, and C-Span. The program has won more categories, including newscast, anchor, sports anchor, sports reporting, spot news, feature reporting, videography, overall student winner, and the All-Alabama award for overall journalism excellence. The program produces the weekly television show, BCN-TV presents Common Ground, Fridays at 8 a.m. on WVUA-TV. The show can also be viewed on the program website, www.bcnty.org.
   • Northridge High School students, under the direction of teacher Susan Newell, created the award-winning Blueprints yearbook and Northridge Reporter newspaper which received top awards from National Scholastic Press Association, Alabama Scholastic Press Association, and Columbia Scholastic Press Association.
   • Middle School students excel in the district. Tuscaloosa Middle School Scholar Bowl team placed second in district competition; Eastwood Middle School students received state recognition from the Duke University Talent Identification Program, and a Westlawn Middle School student won the state musical composition at the State Reflections Art Competition.
   • Tuscaloosa City Schools had three winners in the Statewide Visual Arts Competition.
5. Elementary and middle school students have received awards in Scholar Bowl, math, creative writing, drama, spelling, art, music and Student Council.

Programs: Excellent Opportunities For All Students

1. The Tuscaloosa City School system was selected among 24 Alabama systems for the What Parents Want Most national award for the twelfth consecutive year. This award recognizes schools for excellence in areas such as competitive academic test scores, national average expenditures and small class sizes.
2. An International Baccalaureate Program, one of only six in Alabama, allows students to receive an internationally recognized diploma.
3. Advanced Placement courses give students the opportunity to earn college credit in U.S. History, American Government, Economics, Biology, Chemistry, English, Art, Spanish, French, Calculus and Psychology. Students earn many hours of college credit each year.
4. The nationally acclaimed, interdisciplinary American Studies program is offered at all three high schools.
5. An Education Foundation rewards teacher excellence and provides funding for increased technology and curriculum innovations.
6. Each school has a School Improvement Plan designed to ensure that standards are met for the Alabama High School Graduation Exam and Stanford Achievement Test.
7. Middle school students can choose electives ranging from art and choral music to foreign languages, technology and Exploratory Strings in Schools.
8. Pre-kindergarten programs offered in 19 classes at five elementary schools provide developmental, social and early learning experiences to prepare students for success in school.
9. A career/technical program provides students with a firm academic and technological foundation for success in a changing world. Students may receive training in 24 career/technical areas, all having achieved state certification. Career technical classes are offered at middle schools, high schools and Tuscaloosa Center for Technology (TCT). Involvement by local business leaders assure that students are provided instruction needed for today’s workforce.
10. Involvement in the Tuscaloosa Sister Cities program allows students and teachers to participate in exchange programs with Schorndorf, Germany and Narashino City, Japan. Travel experiences provide students with learning opportunities and experiences on an international level.

Facilities: Progress Is Our #1 Priority

1. The Tuscaloosa City School system spans 19 campuses including 11 elementary neighborhood schools; three middle schools (grades 6-8); three high schools; and campuses devoted to vocational and special education. Expansions at two elementary schools will create K-8 campuses opening for 2008-2009. A new southern K-8 facility and a K-8 magnet school replacing a current middle school will open for the 2008-2009 school year.
2. Aggressive facility plans have assured that school buildings are state-of-the-art. Projects currently completed are three new high schools, a new middle school, a new elementary school, a new K-5/6-8 school and two middle school additions. Funding from a countywide sales tax and the new state bond.
3. A special point of pride for the Tuscaloosa City Schools is that no portable units are used for classrooms in the entire school system.

Funding: Partnerships Make Growth Happen

1. The school system operates on an annual budget of more than $140 million with $35 million allocated for capital outlay projects.
2. Local funds are a core resource. The city’s investors enable us to have more than 125 additional personnel to reduce class loads and provide special programs.
3. The City Council is highly supportive of the school system as evidenced by a $3 million annual appropriation as well as recent financial assistance with the building of three new high schools and implementing the Pre-K Initiative.