Jonesboro Middle School’s African American enrollment rises to 575 for 2024-25

Enrollment of African American students at Jonesboro Middle School reached 575 for the 2024-25 school year, representing a 10.2% increase compared with the prior year, reports the Georgia Department of Education.

Total student enrollment at Jonesboro Middle School for 2024-25 was 914, with African Americans accounting for 63%—the school’s largest student group, according to the data.

The school operates as part of Clayton County School District, which has its central office in Jonesboro.

Within the 65 schools of Clayton County School District, Lovejoy High School had the highest number of enrolled African American students for 2024-25, totaling 1,614.

According to the Georgia Department of Education’s Fiscal Year 2026-1 report, more than 1.7 million students attended Georgia’s public schools. The most significant share was in elementary grades with 787,206 students (45.9%), followed by 388,733 middle schoolers (22.7%) and 539,092 high school students (31.4%).

A chronic absenteeism issue continues to affect Georgia schools following the pandemic. Georgia Department of Education data shows that 20.7% of students missed at least 10% of school days in 2024. To address this, the department rolled out a statewide strategy that includes a real-time attendance dashboard, awareness efforts, and targeted support for districts with high absenteeism rates.

Georgia lawmakers enacted updated school attendance regulations in 2025, prohibiting expulsion based solely on absences. The legislation also introduced expanded reporting guidelines and supports graduation through alternative programs.

By 2026, Georgia schools averaged a student-to-teacher ratio of about 14:1, an improvement over the national average of 15:1.