Summary:
Decatur County Schools is a small west Tennessee district serving about 1,459 students across four schools: one high school, one middle school, and two elementary schools. The district ranks 57th out of 141 Tennessee districts with a 3-star rating, but that average hides a wide gap between schools — two schools are strong 4-star performers, one is a mid-tier 4-star high school, and one elementary school has dropped to 2-star status.
Decaturville Elementary School is the district's clear standout, ranking in the 89th percentile of Tennessee elementary schools with 4 stars. Its math proficiency rate of 82.9% is nearly double the state average, and its chronic absenteeism rate of just 6.2% is remarkably low. By contrast, Parsons Elementary School has fallen from the 62nd percentile in 2023–2024 to the 40th percentile today, and is now the district's only 2-star school. Math proficiency at Parsons is 39.4% — a 43.5-point gap behind Decaturville. Decatur County Middle School is the district's most consistent school, ranking in the 70th–74th percentile for three straight years, with particularly strong 8th-grade scores across all subjects. Riverside High School ranks in the 73rd percentile with 4 stars, excelling in Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry, but struggling in US History (27% proficiency) and Biology (43.3%).
Chronic absenteeism is a district-wide concern: Decatur County Middle (19.6%), Parsons Elementary (18.1%), and Riverside High (17.2%) all exceed the district rate of 15.3%, with the middle school exceeding the state average. Spending does not neatly explain outcomes — Decaturville spends the most per pupil ($13,609) and performs the best, but Decatur County Middle posts strong results with the lowest spending ($11,680). Riverside's dropout rate of 2.8% is excellent, though its graduation rate of 89.8% trails the state average slightly. The clearest priorities are reversing Parsons' decline, replicating Decaturville's practices, targeting US History and Biology at Riverside, and monitoring 5th-grade math, which sits at just 32.7% proficiency at the middle school before climbing to 63.2% by 8th grade.
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