Summary:
Carthage, Tennessee is home to 5 public schools in the Smith County Schools district, serving approximately 1,786 students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The district ranks 45th out of 141 districts in Tennessee with a 3-star rating. The schools include Smith County High School (grades 9–12), Smith County Middle School (grades 5–8), Carthage Elementary School (PK–4), and two PK–8 schools, Defeated Elementary School and Union Heights Elementary School.
Smith County Middle School is the district's standout for momentum, jumping from the 40th to the 74th percentile in state rankings and earning a 4-star rating. Math proficiency rose from 38% to 51.4%, and social studies soared to 59%, both above state averages. Defeated Elementary School remains the strongest elementary school, leading the city in ELA (50.6%) and social studies (63.5%), with the lowest chronic absenteeism rate in the district at just 5.6%. However, it slipped from a 5-star, 90th-percentile ranking to a 3-star, 62nd-percentile ranking, with notable declines in math and science. Smith County High School shows a split profile: it exceeds state averages in Biology I, US History, and English II, but trails significantly in Algebra I (20.8% vs. 32.3% statewide) and English I.
Carthage Elementary School is the district's most urgent priority, ranking in the 28th percentile with a 1-star rating despite being the largest elementary school and spending $13,775 per student. Union Heights Elementary School also struggles, ranking in the 45th percentile and lagging district averages in every subject. All five schools are below the state's 18.3% chronic absenteeism average, but the middle school and high school exceed the district's 10.2% average. The high school's graduation rate of 85.3% trails the state average of 90.5%, though its dropout rate of 1.1% is well below the state's 6.7%. Notably, per-student spending varies from $11,589 to $14,491, yet higher spending does not reliably predict better outcomes.
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