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Best Public Schools in Smith County, TN

At a glance

Schools

3,033

Students

5-star school

Top rankedDefeated Elementary98^th of 1,009 Tennessee elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Union Heights Elementary up 110 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Smith County High School 11.3 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

3★

2★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

See the top-ranked Tennessee schools →

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				TNReady Mathematics (2025)							TNReady English Language Arts (2025)							TNReady Algebra I (2025)		TNReady Algebra II (2025)		TNReady Biology I (2025)			TNReady US History (2025)				TNReady English I (2025)		TNReady English II (2025)		TNReady Geometry (2025)		TNReady Science (2025)							TNReady Social Studies (2025)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	TNReady Mathematics 3rd Grade	TNReady Mathematics 4th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 5th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 6th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 7th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 8th Grade	TNReady Mathematics All Grades	TNReady English Language Arts 3rd Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 4th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 5th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 6th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 7th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 8th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts All Grades	TNReady Algebra I 9th Grade	TNReady Algebra I All Grades	TNReady Algebra II 11th Grade	TNReady Algebra II All Grades	TNReady Biology I 10th Grade	TNReady Biology I 11th Grade	TNReady Biology I All Grades	TNReady US History 10th Grade	TNReady US History 11th Grade	TNReady US History 12th Grade	TNReady US History All Grades	TNReady English I 9th Grade	TNReady English I All Grades	TNReady English II 10th Grade	TNReady English II All Grades	TNReady Geometry 10th Grade	TNReady Geometry All Grades	TNReady Science 3rd Grade	TNReady Science 4th Grade	TNReady Science 5th Grade	TNReady Science 6th Grade	TNReady Science 7th Grade	TNReady Science 8th Grade	TNReady Science All Grades	TNReady Social Studies 6th Grade	TNReady Social Studies 7th Grade	TNReady Social Studies 8th Grade	TNReady Social Studies All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Carthage Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	149 Skyline DR	Carthage	37030	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 735-0433	424	27	15.4		350 (82.5%)	11 (2.6%)	25 (5.9%)	5 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (7.5%)	45.5	534^th of 1009 public elementary schools	47.1%		41.1	601^st of 1018 public elementary schools	41.0%	67	46.8	37.8					42.0	26.6	40.0					33.7																		44.3	53.3					49.1					$13,775	$1,236	$11,486
Defeated Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	451 Defeated Creek HWY	Carthage	37030	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 774-3150	260	20	13.2		242 (93.1%)	2 (0.8%)	8 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.1%)	88.1	98^th of 1009 public elementary schools	90.3%		74.8	194^th of 1018 public elementary schools	80.9%	96	60.7	54.2	70.4	57.7	58.1	63.0	60.7	60.7	58.3	70.4	65.4	48.4	37.0	56.4																		82.1	66.7	59.3	76.9	38.7	55.6	62.6	76.9	58.1	74.1	69.0	$12,018	$675	$10,452
Forks River Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	611 Cookeville HWY	Elmwood	38560	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 897-2676	220	16	13.9		205 (93.2%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.7%)	54.6	423^rd of 1009 public elementary schools	58.1%		71.9	221^st of 1018 public elementary schools	78.3%	202	34.8	36.4	26.7	67.7	50.0	72.7	48.3	21.7	36.4	33.3	74.2	22.2	54.5	42.5																		39.1	54.5	13.3	64.5	38.9	54.5	46.7	48.4	50.0	63.6	51.7	$12,818	$880	$10,841
Gordonsville Elementary School	Public	3-6	104 Main Street East	Gordonsville	38563	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 683-8252	312	18	17.3		281 (90.1%)	3 (1.0%)	15 (4.8%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	10 (3.2%)	74.7	196^th of 1009 public elementary schools	80.6%		73.4	207^th of 1018 public elementary schools	79.7%	11	67.6	60.9	58.6	41.7			57.1	66.2	59.4	42.9	50.0			53.3																		66.2	54.7	53.5	51.4			56.1	52.8			52.8	$11,865	$691	$10,249
New Middleton Elementary	Public	PK, KG-2	402 New Middleton HWY	Gordonsville	38563	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 683-8411	237	16	14.8		203 (85.7%)	3 (1.3%)	7 (3.0%)	4 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (8.4%)								(n/a)																																											$13,655	$796	$11,733
Smith County High School	Public	9-12	312 Fite AVE	Carthage	37030	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	No	(615) 735-9219	493	43	11.3		412 (83.6%)	12 (2.4%)	44 (8.9%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.5%)	54.6	153^rd of 389 public high schools	60.7%		66.8	86^th of 392 public high schools	78.1%	67															20.7	20.3	12.7	13.3	75.0	45.1	51.0		34.4		35.9	36.4	36.4	62.8	63.2	36.9	32.0												$14,491	$519	$13,030
Union Heights Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	663 Lebanon HWY	Carthage	37030	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 735-1975	242	18	13.6		208 (86.0%)	3 (1.2%)	21 (8.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (4.1%)	54.3	427^th of 1009 public elementary schools	57.7%		45.5	537^th of 1018 public elementary schools	47.2%	110	28.0	40.0	52.2	75.0	33.3	34.5	42.5	40.0	40.0	30.4	50.0	16.7	20.7	32.2																		48.0	56.0	34.8	55.0	20.8	24.1	39.0	45.0	20.8	27.6	30.1	$11,589	$604	$9,957
Smith County Middle School	Public	5-8	134 Smith County Middle School	Carthage	37030	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 735-8277	313	20	15.6		257 (82.1%)	5 (1.6%)	25 (8.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (8.0%)	49.2	284^th of 583 public middle schools	51.3%		37.9	355^th of 587 public middle schools	39.5%	71			37.9	54.0	33.8	28.2	38.0			30.8	55.6	28.4	16.9	32.2																				65.2	58.7	44.6	28.2	48.5	57.1	45.9	19.7	40.4	$12,297	$1,022	$10,182
Gordonsville High School	Public	7-12	110 Main Street East	Gordonsville	38563	Smith County	Smith County	No	No	No	No	(615) 683-8245	532	36	14.5		482 (90.6%)	9 (1.7%)	18 (3.4%)	4 (0.8%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.2%)	60.4	121^st of 389 public high schools	68.9%		62.6	108^th of 392 public high schools	72.4%	13					42.9	40.5	41.6					46.8	26.2	36.0	31.5	31.5	22.6	22.8	75.0	51.0	56.0	41.7	31.2	34.6	33.6	48.9	48.9	56.6	54.4	26.3	24.7					64.9	47.6	55.9		64.9	63.1	64.0	$12,383	$554	$10,993

SchoolDigger rankings lists for Tennessee:

Elementary Schools Middle Schools High Schools Districts Cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Tennessee Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.