Summary:
Pelham, Tennessee is served by a single school, Pelham Elementary School, a Pre-K through 8th grade institution enrolling 165 students within the Grundy County Schools district, which ranks in the bottom quarter of Tennessee districts.
Despite the district's low ranking, Pelham Elementary is a bright spot, ranking in the 59th percentile of Tennessee schools — its best showing in three years after a dip in 2024-2025. The school outperforms its district in every tested subject, exceeding state averages in English Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies while slightly trailing in Mathematics. The most dramatic improvement came in English Language Arts, which jumped 14.1 percentage points in a single year, moving from well below the state average to above it. Science and Social Studies also showed solid gains.
Within the school, the 5th grade stands out as exceptional, with 81.3% proficiency in Science compared to the state's 46.5%. However, the transition to 6th grade brings a sharp decline in Mathematics (21.4% vs. 40.1% state), Science (21.4% vs. 48.0% state), and Social Studies (28.6% vs. 50.7% state), signaling a need for targeted support in the middle school years. The school's chronic absenteeism rate of 16.4% is slightly better than both the district (16.8%) and state (18.3%) averages, while per-pupil spending stands at $14,659. Overall, Pelham Elementary demonstrates that a small school can achieve strong results, but sustaining gains depends on addressing the 6th-grade slump.
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