Shades Cahaba Elementary, 3001 Independence Drive: kindergarten to fifth grade, 513 students on the 2024-25 state report card, graded A with 99 points.
Last checked Oct. 17, 2026. Sources: the school’s website, its About Us page and faculty and staff page; Homewood City Schools’ Student Enrollment page, school locator map and 2026-27 calendar (PDF); Homewood Middle’s About Us page; the Alabama State Department of Education’s state report card for 2024-25; and the federal NCES school directory for 2023-24.
Shades Cahaba Elementary, on Independence Drive on Homewood’s east side, is the smallest of the city’s three elementary schools. Alabama graded it an A, with 99 points, on its 2024-25 report card. The building dates from 1920 and served as a high school in its early years before becoming an elementary school in 1950, its About Us page says.
Who to call
- Front office: 205-871-1113, 3001 Independence Drive
- School website: sces.homewood.k12.al.us
- Enrolling a new student or kindergartner: the district’s Student Enrollment page
- Which school is my address zoned for? HCS Residency and Enrollment Department, 205-870-2011, by appointment
- Board of Education office: 205-870-4203, 450 Dale Ave., 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
| Address | 3001 Independence Drive, Homewood, AL 35209 |
| Phone | 205-871-1113 |
| Grades | Kindergarten to 5 |
| School hours | 7:45 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
| District | Homewood City Schools |
| Feeds | Homewood Middle, then Homewood High |
| State school code | 157-0040 |
Principal
Principal Wendy Story, according to the school’s faculty and staff page. Assistant Principal Lindsay Galafassi is listed with her.
Enrollment and teachers
- State count: 513 students on the 2024-25 Alabama state report card, up from 503 on the 2023-24 card.
- Federal count: 510 students in the 2023-24 school year, with 34 full-time-equivalent teachers, according to the NCES directory. That is 15 students per teacher.
State report card
Alabama grades every public school from A to F each year. For an elementary school, the 100-point score is built from students’ achievement and growth on state tests in English language arts and math, chronic absenteeism (the share of students who missed 18 or more days) and progress in English language proficiency, according to the Alabama State Department of Education’s report card rules.
2024-25 grade: A, 99 points. The 2023-24 card also gave Shades Cahaba an A with 99 points. Homewood City Schools as a whole earned an A, with 96 points.
| Indicator | 2024-25 score |
|---|---|
| Academic achievement (ELA and math tests) | 100 |
| Academic growth | 100 |
| Chronic absenteeism (lower is better) | 4.34% of students |
The card shows no English language proficiency score for Shades Cahaba. The full report card, with results by student group, teachers and spending, is on the state’s report card site.
Attendance zone
Homewood has three elementary zones; check an address with the district’s school locator map. The district says the map is for information only, is not legally binding and should not be used for buying or renting decisions; call the residency department at 205-870-2011 to confirm.
Shades Cahaba students go on to Homewood Middle, which names Shades Cahaba as one of its three feeder schools on its About Us page, and then to Homewood High.
Our neighborhood guides show where the Shades Cahaba zone falls, from the city’s address points: downtown, Hollywood, Rosedale and the Homewood side of Brookwood Village, and parts of Grove Park, Mayfair and Windsor Highlands and Lakeshore.
The school
From the school’s About Us page: Shades Cahaba was named a National School of Character in 2006, 2012 and 2017, and was one of five Alabama schools recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School in 2015. The school’s website links a library, school counseling and child nutrition.
Calendar
Shades Cahaba follows the Homewood City Schools 2026-27 calendar (PDF). Coming dates:
- Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day, no school
- Nov. 23-27: Thanksgiving break
- Friday, Dec. 18: noon dismissal, end of the second nine weeks
- Dec. 21 to Jan. 4: winter break; students return Tuesday, Jan. 5
- March 22-26, 2027: spring break
More
- The district’s Student Enrollment page, with every school’s address, phone and hours
- Every public school in Homewood, with zones and report cards
- Our Homewood schools guide for the district calendar, enrollment and the school board
Frequently asked questions
What grades does Shades Cahaba Elementary serve?
Shades Cahaba Elementary in Homewood serves kindergarten through fifth grade.
What is Shades Cahaba Elementary’s state report card grade?
Shades Cahaba earned an A, with 99 points, on Alabama’s 2024-25 state report card, the same score as on the 2023-24 card.
Which middle and high school does Shades Cahaba Elementary feed into?
Homewood Middle, then Homewood High. Homewood Middle’s website names Shades Cahaba as one of its three feeder schools.
What time does Shades Cahaba Elementary start?
School hours at Shades Cahaba are 7:45 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to the district’s enrollment page.
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