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Jefferson County · Alabama

Birmingham, AL public schools

Enrollment, school count, staffing and per-pupil spending for Birmingham City — federal education data, not a star rating.

Quick answer

Birmingham City is the primary public district for Birmingham, AL. It enrolls 21,130 students in 49 schools with 1,115 full-time-equivalent teachers, and spends $13,068 per pupil, 25% below the $17,320 median across the metros covered here.

Students enrolled
21,130NCES Common Core of Data, 2021-22
Schools in the district
49Operating school count
Students per teacher
19Enrollment ÷ FTE teachers, not class size
Spending per pupil
$13,068Total current expenditure, FY2020

Who pays for schools in Birmingham

Where the district's money comes from, FY2020.

Local revenue
36.3%
$113,193,000
State revenue
46.6%
$145,548,000
Federal revenue
17.1%
$53,353,000

Local revenue is mostly property tax, which is why the Birmingham property tax rate and school funding move together. Of every dollar spent, about 49 cents reaches instruction — teacher salaries, benefits and classroom materials — with the rest covering transport, buildings, food service and administration.

What this data covers

Read this before comparing districts.

Figures describe Birmingham City (LEAID 0100390) as a whole, not any individual school. Charter schools authorised outside the district, private schools and regional vocational schools are not included. Where a city is served by a county-wide district, the county district is used and its catchment is wider than the city limits. Enrollment is from the 2021-22 NCES collection; money is from the FY2020 Census school finance survey, which is the most recent complete national release — the two years do not line up exactly, so per-pupil spending is a stable indicator rather than a current budget line.

Other Birmingham data on this site.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data + Census F-33, via Urban Institute Education Data · rates as published for 2021-22 / FY2020

NCES LEAID 0100390. Finance figures are Census Annual Survey of School System Finances (F-33) totals as redistributed by the Urban Institute Education Data API.