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Central High

Q: Is Central High a good school?

Central High ranks in the bottom 18.5% of Tennessee high schools.

Q: How many students attend Central High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,331 students attended Central High.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Central High?

Students at Central High are 83% African American, 9% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 3% White.

Q: What schools feed into Central High?

Central High is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Bruce Elementary Elementary : Idlewild Elementary Elementary : Peabody Elementary Elementary : Rozelle Elementary Elementary : Snowden Elementary/Middle Middle : Bellevue Middle

Public, Magnet Grades 9-12

317^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 389 Tennessee High Schools

Better than 19% of Tennessee high schools

Summary

Central High is a public magnet high school located in Memphis, Tennessee, serving grades 9-12 with a total enrollment of 1,300 students. The school is part of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district, which is ranked 135 out of 139 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Central High has consistently ranked in the bottom half of Central High's academic performance, as measured by standardized test scores, is significantly lower than the state and district averages across various subjects and grade levels. The school's performance is particularly weak in mathematics, with proficiency rates in Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry consistently below 15% in recent years. However, the school's White students and Special Education students perform relatively well, with rankings in the top quartile of Tennessee high schools in recent years.

Despite its relatively poor performance, Central High is located in close proximity to several higher-performing schools, including Middle College High, Medical District High School, and Crosstown High School. The school's struggles are emblematic of the broader challenges facing the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district, which is one of the lowest-performing districts in the state.

1,331

Students ?

16.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,857

Per pupil spending ?

77.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

306 S Bellevue Blvd
Memphis, TN 38104-3535

(901) 416-4500

District: Memphis-Shelby County Schools

Feeder schools for Central High:

Elementary:	Bruce Elementary
	Idlewild Elementary
	Peabody Elementary
	Rozelle Elementary
	More...
	Snowden Elementary/Middle
Middle:	Bellevue Middle

Racial breakdown:

African American:

83.0%

Hispanic:

8.7%

Two or more races:

4.6%

See top rated Tennessee high schools

Compare Central High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 27th percentile in 2016 → 19th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Tennessee average (22% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (19th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (36% vs 18% Tennessee)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school22%

District avg23%

Tennessee avg40%

317^th of 389

Tennessee public high schools ?

Bottom 19%▼ down 9 pts since 2016

From bottom 27% (2016) to bottom 19% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

20^th of 42High Schools in the Memphis-Shelby County Schools

135^th of 139Memphis-Shelby County Schools among Tennessee districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	22.1	317 of 389	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.3	324 of 392	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.0	309 of 384	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.7	258 of 358	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.0	266 of 347	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	28.2	261 of 342	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.1	211 of 341	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2017	27.9	207 of 273	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	33.2	255 of 351	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	36.4	138 of 233	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	31.9	151 of 240	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.1	118 of 239	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	48.0	83 of 222	62.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	41.5	107 of 208	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.6	79 of 187	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	55.5	55 of 199	72.4%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2018	17.9	42 of 47	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	22.9	300 of 365	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.8	301 of 365	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.4	305 of 366	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.2	267 of 350	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.1	264 of 340	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.9	252 of 337	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2024	8.3	9 of 9	0.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	36.4	8 of 11	27.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.8	9 of 11	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.1	19 of 20	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	26.3	14 of 17	17.6%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	27.6	166 of 213	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.3	164 of 209	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	39.1	112 of 202	44.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.6	139 of 189	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	32.7	118 of 180	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	39.3	87 of 153	43.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	47.2	72 of 159	54.7%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	35.5	213 of 324	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.7	200 of 337	40.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	40.5	185 of 330	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	43.4	160 of 322	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	32.8	224 of 317	29.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.5	195 of 302	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.8	201 of 308	34.7%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	19.7	302 of 368	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.4	312 of 366	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.5	274 of 359	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.9	246 of 349	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.4	259 of 332	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.6	260 of 329	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	76.1	15 of 198	92.4%	★★★★★
2024	46.7	70 of 183	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	32.6	99 of 154	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	51.8	36 of 125	71.2%	★★★★☆
2018	40.8	83 of 159	47.8%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2023	60.6	84 of 325	74.2%	★★★★☆
2022	82.4	23 of 312	92.6%	★★★★★
2021	66.6	54 of 306	82.4%	★★★★☆
2019	77.1	38 of 301	87.4%	★★★★☆
2018	74.8	41 of 307	86.6%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Special Education (2025)92nd percentile+74 vs school

White (2023)74th percentile+55 vs school

African American (2025)41st percentile+22 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)34th percentile+16 vs school

Hispanic (2025)22nd percentile+4 vs school

Male (2025)18th percentile~ school

Female (2025)18th percentile~ school

Asian (2018)11th percentile-27 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2024)<1st percentile-17 vs school

By subject vs Tennessee (2024-2025) ?

English II44%-11 vs state

Biology I32%-14 vs state

English I21%-18 vs state

Algebra II15%-20 vs state

Geometry13%-24 vs state

Algebra I11%-18 vs state

US History6%-32 vs state

★

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Schools Near Central High

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 Integrated Math I (2025)		TNReady Integrated Math II (2025)			TNReady Integrated Math III (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 6th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 7th Grade	TNReady Mathematics 8th Grade	TNReady Mathematics All Grades	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 10th Grade	TNReady Algebra II 11th Grade	TNReady Algebra II 12th Grade	TNReady Algebra II All Grades	TNReady Biology I 9th Grade	TNReady Biology I 10th Grade	TNReady Biology I 11th Grade	TNReady Biology I All Grades	TNReady Integrated Math I 9th Grade	TNReady Integrated Math I All Grades	TNReady Integrated Math II 9th Grade	TNReady Integrated Math II 10th Grade	TNReady Integrated Math II All Grades	TNReady Integrated Math III 10th Grade	TNReady Integrated Math III 11th Grade	TNReady Integrated Math III All Grades	TNReady US History 10th Grade	TNReady US History 11th 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 9th Grade	TNReady Geometry 10th Grade	TNReady Geometry 11th Grade	TNReady Geometry All Grades	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
Central High	Public, Magnet	9-12	306 S Bellevue Blvd	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(901) 416-4500	1,300	79	16.4		45 (3.5%)	1,086 (83.5%)	99 (7.6%)	13 (1.0%)	3 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (4.2%)	22.1	317^th of 389 public high schools	18.5%		20.3	324^th of 392 public high schools	17.3%	7									11.5	11.1	32.4	10.0		14.7	63.2	20.6	10.5	31.8											6.1	20.9	20.9	44.7	43.6	42.1	9.9	21.4	13.1									$12,857	$1,348	$10,898
Memphis Academy Of Science Engineering Middle/High	Public, Charter	6-12	1254 Jefferson AVE	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 333-1580	696	48	14.4		1 (0.1%)	633 (90.9%)	47 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (2.2%)	16.1	342^nd of 389 public high schools	12.1%		18.7	330^th of 392 public high schools	15.8%	12	19.4	9.1	28.6	18.6	20.8	10.2	10.3	13.4	7.1	7.1	7.7	5.8		5.4	33.3	13.7		18.1									21.1	38.5	24.2	18.4	18.4	39.6	39.1		7.6		11.5	22.2	12.4	25.0	19.4	38.0	21.6	34.7	30.8	$17,299	$1,623	$15,310
Medical District High School	Public	9-12	737 Union AVE	Memphis	38103	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	No	(901) 416-9698	111	10	11.5		5 (4.5%)	89 (80.2%)	13 (11.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.6%)	65.1	93^rd of 389 public high schools	76.1%		80.8	38^th of 392 public high schools	90.3%	55									25.7	25.7		38.1		40.0	52.5			52.5												52.5	52.5	73.3	73.3		30.8		35.5									$16,088	$1,046	$14,676
Compass Community School Midtown Campus	Public, Charter	9-12	61 N. McLean BLVD	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 276-1221	356	31	11.6		10 (2.8%)	115 (32.3%)	221 (62.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.5%)	37.8	229^th of 389 public high schools	41.1%		33.2	263^rd of 392 public high schools	32.9%	34									10.5	10.5		20.9		21.8			37.2	37.5										30.6	30.3	15.2	15.2	54.5	54.5		32.1		31.7									$13,992	$1,421	$12,205
Crosstown High School	Public, Charter	9-12	1365 Tower AVE	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 401-5505	499	36	13.7		153 (30.7%)	266 (53.3%)	57 (11.4%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.0%)	54.9	150^th of 389 public high schools	61.4%		57.4	133^rd of 392 public high schools	66.1%	17																38.7		37.6	14.3	14.3	92.3	25.5	33.6	80.0	28.6	39.5				31.2	31.2	71.0	71.0													$14,982	$1,175	$13,440
Hollis F. Price Middle College	Public	9-12	807 Walker Ave	Memphis	38126	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 435-1765	105	10	10.9		0 (0.0%)	96 (91.4%)	6 (5.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.9%)	35.1	246^th of 389 public high schools	36.8%		26.3	295^th of 392 public high schools	24.7%	49									12.5	12.5				8.1	34.6			35.7												30.8	30.8	58.6	58.6			16.7	16.7									$22,539	$1,300	$20,872
Soulsville Charter School	Public, Charter	6-12	1115 College ST	Memphis	38106	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 261-6366	656	59	11.0		1 (0.2%)	633 (96.5%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (2.7%)	20	322^nd of 389 public high schools	17.2%		24.5	307^th of 392 public high schools	21.7%	15	17.1	14.9	17.7	16.6	14.0	12.6	14.6	13.8							13.2	18.8		14.7				20.2	20.2	60.0	6.5	16.9				10.5	10.5	40.4	40.0					19.8	27.1	14.3	20.3	15.9	43.8	30.9	29.7	$18,101	$1,463	$15,785
B. T. Washington High	Public	6-12	715 S Lauderdale St	Memphis	38126	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-7240	454	40	11.3		0 (0.0%)	444 (97.8%)	6 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.9%)	19.2	328^th of 389 public high schools	15.7%		24.7	305^th of 392 public high schools	22.2%	23		5.9			6.5				13.2	13.0		30.0	5.9	24.6			9.8	8.2												8.7	8.7	9.5	9.4					10.9			7.2	6.5	5.9	6.9	6.5	$17,605	$1,757	$14,389
Middle College High	Public	9-12	750 E Parkway S	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-4550	333	14	24.5		6 (1.8%)	304 (91.3%)	5 (1.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (5.1%)	75	58^th of 389 public high schools	85.1%		82.5	34^th of 392 public high schools	91.3%	24									23.1	23.1	78.9	40.4		51.3	66.1			64.2												51.6	51.6	83.6	83.6	40.0	48.1		48.5									$15,873	$1,017	$13,676
Hamilton High	Public	9-12	1363 E Person Ave	Memphis	38106	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-7838	647	32	20.4		1 (0.2%)	592 (91.5%)	34 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (3.1%)	5.2	388^th of 389 public high schools	0.3%		10.2	366^th of 392 public high schools	6.6%	22																	7.4	5.5														9.4	8.5													$14,949	$2,304	$11,585

Frequently Asked Questions about Central High

Is Central High a good school?

Central High ranks in the bottom 18.5% of Tennessee high schools.

What is the racial makeup of Central High?

Students at Central High are 83% African American, 9% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 3% White.

What district is Central High in?

Memphis-Shelby County Schools

What schools feed into Central High?

Central High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Bruce Elementary
Elementary : Idlewild Elementary
Elementary : Peabody Elementary
Elementary : Rozelle Elementary
Elementary : Snowden Elementary/Middle
Middle : Bellevue Middle

How many students attend Central High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,331 students attended Central High.

Rate Central High!

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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.