Van Buren County Schools

Van Buren County Schools is a small rural Tennessee district with only two schools — Van Buren County High School, serving grades 6–12 with 384 students, and Spencer Elementary School, serving grades PK–5 with 372 students. Because there is no standalone middle school, the high school houses both middle and high school grades. The district overall ranks 70th out of 141 Tennessee districts, placing it at the 50th percentile with a 3-star rating, yet the two schools sit on opposite ends of the performance spectrum.

Van Buren County High School is the district's clear standout. It ranks 84th out of 400 high schools (79th percentile) with a 4-star rating, and its position has improved dramatically from 178th in 2023–2024 to 100th in 2024–2025 to 84th in 2025–2026. The school also posts a 98.0% graduation rate versus the state's 90.5% and a 2.0% dropout rate versus the state's 6.7%. In specific subjects, it excels in Algebra II (40.9% proficiency), Geometry (44.2%), and especially 8th-grade math (60% vs. 38.3% statewide). However, chronic absenteeism is a real concern at 23.9% — about 2.4 times higher than the elementary school's 9.9% — and ELA proficiency sits at just 30.7%, well below the state's 40.6%.

Spencer Elementary School tells a different story. It ranks 584th out of 1,019 elementary schools (43rd percentile) with a 2-star rating, and its strengths lie outside of test scores. Only 9.9% of students are chronically absent, and the school spends $16,023 per student, about 15% more than the high school's $13,937. Academically, it has bright spots in 3rd-grade science (57.1% vs. 44.3% statewide) and 4th-grade math near the state average, but elementary ELA declined sharply from 43.4% to 38.9% in one year, trailing the state average of 40.6%. Overall, the district's high school is the rising star, while Spencer Elementary School struggles to keep pace despite higher spending and better attendance.