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Idlewild Elementary

Public, Magnet Grades K-5
95th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,009 Tennessee Elementary Schools
Better than 91% of Tennessee elementary schools
Summary

Idlewild Elementary is a public magnet elementary school in Memphis, Tennessee, serving 588 students in grades K-5. This high-performing school consistently ranks among the top 15% of Tennessee elementary schools, with exceptional academic results that outshine the district and state averages.

Idlewild Elementary's proficiency rates in Mathematics, English Language Arts, and Science are significantly higher than the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district and the state of Tennessee. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 62% of Idlewild students were proficient or better in Mathematics, compared to just 22.6% for the district and 42.2% for the state. The school also performs exceptionally well across different student subgroups, ranking among the top 10% of Tennessee elementary schools for white students and special education students.

Idlewild Elementary's success is further highlighted by its lower chronic absenteeism rates compared to the district average, and its significantly higher per-student spending of $14,276 in the 2023-2024 school year, compared to the district's average of $10,733. Interestingly, Idlewild outperforms nearby William Herbert Brewster Elementary, Hanley K-8, Peabody Elementary, Rozelle Elementary, Snowden Elementary/Middle, and Compass Community School Binghampton Campus, which have lower academic proficiency, higher chronic absenteeism, and lower rankings.

593
Students ?
15.8
Student/teacher ratio ?
$14,776
Per pupil spending ?
50%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 1950 Linden Ave
       Memphis, TN  38104-4035

(901) 416-4566

District: Memphis-Shelby County Schools


Students who attend Idlewild Elementary usually attend:

High:    Central High
Racial breakdown:

White:
42.7%
African American:
38.8%
Two or more races:
8.6%
more
 See top rated Tennessee elementary schools

 Compare Idlewild Elementary to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Improving — 86th percentile in 2017 → 91st in 2025
Strengths
Test scores above the Tennessee average (67% vs 42% meeting standards)
Ranks in the top 9% of Tennessee elementary schools
Ranking is trending up — up 5 percentile points since 2017
Worth a look
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school67%
District avg24%
Tennessee avg42%
95th of 1,009
Tennessee public elementary schools ?
Top 9%▲ up 5 pts since 2017
From top 14% (2017) to top 9% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
2nd of 120Elementary Schools in the Memphis-Shelby County Schools
135th 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202588.595 of 100990.6%★★★★★
202487.1107 of 101889.5%★★★★☆
202381.9135 of 102086.8%★★★★☆
202282.4132 of 100086.8%★★★★☆
202153.4398 of 98359.5%★★★☆☆
201981.5142 of 98585.6%★★★★☆
201886.597 of 99790.3%★★★★★
201774.493 of 64685.6%★★★★☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202578.963 of 49887.3%★★★★☆
202478.179 of 49884.1%★★★★☆
202376.885 of 50083.0%★★★★☆
202280.068 of 48385.9%★★★★☆
202165.7100 of 41175.7%★★★★☆
201987.828 of 40493.1%★★★★★
201892.918 of 45096.0%★★★★★

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202588.090 of 98690.9%★★★★★
202485.3104 of 99089.5%★★★★☆
202380.2136 of 98986.2%★★★★☆
202278.6143 of 97585.3%★★★★☆
202154.2366 of 94561.3%★★★☆☆
201977.7148 of 92684.0%★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202529.65 of 50.0%★★★☆☆
202471.61 of 887.5%★★★★★
202355.23 of 862.5%★★★★☆
202225.010 of 100.0%☆☆☆☆☆
202115.713 of 147.1%★☆☆☆☆
201937.45 of 728.6%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202566.3185 of 84378.1%★★★★☆
202474.6123 of 85385.6%★★★★☆
202367.3201 of 86576.8%★★★★☆
202277.4105 of 85887.8%★★★★☆
202127.4630 of 82323.5%★☆☆☆☆
201975.289 of 82189.2%★★★★☆
201891.319 of 87797.8%★★★★★

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202585.7107 of 98489.1%★★★★☆
202485.9103 of 99189.6%★★★★☆
202380.0144 of 98785.4%★★★★☆
202282.2125 of 98087.2%★★★★☆
202145.9460 of 94151.1%★★★☆☆
201980.4133 of 91685.5%★★★★☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202585.841 of 61893.4%★★★★★
202488.432 of 58294.5%★★★★★

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankTennessee percentileRating
202596.126 of 84096.9%★★★★★
202496.419 of 84797.8%★★★★★
202391.866 of 85292.3%★★★★★
202295.335 of 84495.9%★★★★★
202172.3170 of 84479.9%★★★★☆
201990.081 of 81290.0%★★★★★
201890.672 of 84191.4%★★★★★
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)
White (2025)97th percentile+6 vs school
Special Education (2025)93rd percentile+3 vs school
Female (2025)91st percentile~ school
Male (2025)89th percentile~ school
African American (2025)87th percentile-3 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)78th percentile-13 vs school
Gifted and Talented (2025)<1st percentile-91 vs school
By subject vs Tennessee (2024-2025) ?
English Language Arts71%+32 vs state
Science68%+22 vs state
Mathematics62%+20 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Idlewild Elementary

Students who attend Idlewild Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Central High

Students at Idlewild Elementary are 43% White, 39% African American, 9% Two or more races, 5% Hispanic, 4% Asian.

Yes. Idlewild Elementary ranks in the top 9.4% of Tennessee elementary schools.

In the 2024-25 school year, 593 students attended Idlewild Elementary.


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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.





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