District profile / Georgia

Cherokee County

Canton, Georgia · Superintendent: Mary Elizabeth Davis · #9 of 160 Georgia districts by enrollment

Compare with peers

42,031

Students

2024-25 school year

Schools

2024-25 school year

$11,358

Spending per student

FY2020-21 · 5% below the Georgia median

14.4

Students per teacher

2024-25 · Georgia median 13.9

Cherokee County is a public school district based in Canton, Georgia, serving 42,031 students in 37 schools. By enrollment it ranks #9 of the 160 Georgia districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 95% of them. Its schools average 1,136 students each, more than the Georgia median of 662. Its superintendent is Mary Elizabeth Davis. It spends about $11,358 per student on day-to-day operations, 5% less than the Georgia median. It has roughly 14.4 students per teacher.

How Cherokee County compares

Cherokee CountyGeorgia median, districts with 1,000+ students

Spending per student$11,358

Georgia median $11,989 · 5% below · FY2020-21

Instruction spending per student$7,368

Georgia median $7,267 · about the same · FY2020-21

Students per school1,136

Georgia median 662 · 72% above · 2024-25

Students per teacher14.4

Georgia median 13.9 · about the same · 2024-25

Students per counselor425

Georgia median 425 · about the same · 2024-25

Spending and staffing

Where the money comes from$557.7 million in revenue · FY2020-21

Federal 7%State 41%Local 52%

Measure	Cherokee County	Georgia median	Year
Current spending per student	$11,358	$11,989	FY2020-21
Instruction spending per student	$7,368	$7,267	FY2020-21
Total spending	$520.5 million	n/a	FY2020-21
Total revenue	$557.7 million	n/a	FY2020-21
Teachers (full-time equivalent)	2,916	n/a	2024-25
Total staff (full-time equivalent)	5,403	n/a	2024-25
Students per teacher	14.4	13.9	2024-25
Students per counselor	425	425	2024-25

Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The Georgia median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.

Leadership

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Mary Elizabeth Davis

Superintendent, Cherokee County

Source: Georgia School Superintendents Association member directory, checked 2026-10-05. Report a change

In the news

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Peer districts in Georgia

Compare side by side →

District	Students	Schools	Spending per student	Students per teacher	Rank
Clayton CountyJonesboro	51,055	67	$11,027	14.8	#6
Atlanta Public SchoolsAtlanta	49,945	87	$18,492	12.1	#7
Henry CountyMcDonough	43,012	53	$10,537	15.8	#8
Cherokee CountyCanton · this district	42,031	37	$11,358	14.4	#9
Savannah-Chatham CountySavannah	35,744	57	$12,890	13.0	#10

Similar-size districts nationally

District	Students	Spending per student	Students per teacher
Anchorage School DistrictAnchorage, AK	42,573	$16,972	19.3
Lincoln Public SchoolsLincoln, NE	42,301	$12,404	13.9
Fayette CountyLexington, KY	42,138	$14,051	13.8
Williamson CountyFranklin, TN	41,593	$10,483	n/a

Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.

Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-ga-cherokee-county