Best Public Schools in Memphis, TN

Memphis, Tennessee has 187 public schools: 110 elementary, 30 middle, 43 high, and 4 alternative schools, serving kindergarten through 12th grade. Most belong to Memphis-Shelby County Schools, ranked 137th of 141 Tennessee districts (3rd percentile), while charters fall under the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission. Enrollment ranges from about 2,046 students at White Station High School to just 13 at City University School of Independence, though free/reduced-lunch and student-teacher ratio data are missing for nearly all schools.

Despite the district's low ranking, Memphis has islands of excellence. Maxine Smith STEAM Academy ranks in the 95th percentile among middle schools with 94.4% Algebra I proficiency. Richland Elementary School (91st percentile) and Idlewild Elementary School (88th percentile) far exceed state averages, and East High School ranks 43rd among Tennessee high schools with an 87.8% English II proficiency rate and 98.3% graduation. Whitehaven High School ranks 51st with 82.3% Geometry proficiency. Some schools are improving rapidly: Douglass High School jumped from the 3rd to 46th percentile in two years, and Kirby High School and Raleigh-Egypt High School have also moved up.

Chronic absenteeism is a crisis in many schools. The district rate is 30.2% versus 18.3% statewide, and schools like Invictus Academy at Airways (91.5%) and Melrose High School (69.9%) have the lowest test scores in the city. High graduation rates can also mask weak academics: Power Center Academy High School and Soulsville Charter School graduate about 95% of students yet post proficiency below 20%. White Station High School and Southwind High School have nearly identical spending, graduation rates, and demographics, but White Station ranks 96th statewide while Southwind ranks 282nd. Spending doesn't predict outcomes either — Journey East Academy spends about $7,700 per student and outperforms Southern Avenue Charter School Of Academic Excellence Creati, which spends over $29,000.