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Downtown Elementary

Public, Magnet Grades PK, KG-5

861^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,009 Tennessee Elementary Schools

Better than 15% of Tennessee elementary schools

Summary

Downtown Elementary is a public magnet elementary school serving grades PK-5 in Memphis, Tennessee, which is part of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district. Unfortunately, the district is ranked 135 out of 139 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger, and Downtown Elementary has seen a decline in its statewide ranking over the past several years, dropping from a high of 377 out of 997 Tennessee elementary schools in 2017-2018 to a low of 947 out of 1,018 in 2023-2024, with a 0-star rating.

Downtown Elementary consistently underperforms the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district and the state of Tennessee in proficiency rates across all subject areas, with particularly low performance in Math. For example, in 2024-2025, only 19.8% of Downtown Elementary students were proficient or better in Math, compared to 22.6% for the district and 42.2% for the state. The school's high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 18.9% to 29.5% in recent years, likely contribute to its academic struggles.

Interestingly, many of the nearby schools, such as KIPP Memphis Collegiate Elementary, Bruce Elementary, and Ida B. Wells Academy Elementary/Middle School, also struggle academically, with most of them ranking in the bottom half of Tennessee elementary schools. However, KIPP Memphis Collegiate Elementary outperforms Downtown Elementary in both Math and ELA proficiency rates, suggesting that the charter school model may be more effective in this area.

784

Students ?

17.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,875

Per pupil spending ?

79.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

10 N 4th St
Memphis, TN 38103-2712

(901) 416-8400

District: Memphis-Shelby County Schools

Racial breakdown:

African American:

91.3%

Two or more races:

3.4%

White:

2.4%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 43rd percentile in 2017 → 15th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Tennessee average (24% vs 42% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (15th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (33% vs 18% Tennessee)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school24%

District avg24%

Tennessee avg42%

861^st of 1,009

Tennessee public elementary schools ?

Bottom 15%▼ down 28 pts since 2017

From bottom 43% (2017) to bottom 15% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

62^nd of 120Elementary 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	17.9	861 of 1009	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	10.4	947 of 1018	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.9	825 of 1020	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.9	867 of 1000	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.7	887 of 983	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	48.4	457 of 985	53.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	55.8	377 of 997	62.2%	★★★☆☆
2017	43.6	371 of 646	42.6%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	35.5	320 of 498	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	21.2	418 of 498	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.0	298 of 500	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	29.7	330 of 483	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	24.4	315 of 411	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	70.3	82 of 404	79.7%	★★★★☆
2018	76.1	64 of 450	85.8%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	16.2	861 of 986	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	9.8	936 of 990	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.6	803 of 989	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.2	860 of 975	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.7	821 of 945	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	54.5	375 of 926	59.5%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	27.4	684 of 843	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.5	792 of 853	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	28.4	666 of 865	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.9	688 of 858	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.8	780 of 823	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	72.6	107 of 821	87.0%	★★★★☆
2018	68.9	152 of 877	82.7%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	21.0	822 of 984	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.8	912 of 991	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.7	771 of 987	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.2	804 of 980	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	8.6	908 of 941	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	41.1	536 of 916	41.5%	★★☆☆☆

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)

African American (2025)36th percentile+21 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)19th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2025)16th percentile~ school

Female (2025)13th percentile~ school

By subject vs Tennessee (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts30%-9 vs state

Science23%-23 vs state

Mathematics20%-22 vs state

5.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★2

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, September 12, 2018

CONGRATULATIONS and well done!!! Downtown Elementary, on your recent scorecard 4.63 over 5. Close Quote

by a parent
Wednesday, September 12, 2018

Amazing facilities and good classes Close Quote

Schools Near Downtown Elementary

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 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 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
Downtown Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	10 N 4th St	Memphis	38103	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(901) 416-8400	762	44	17.3		19 (2.5%)	701 (92.0%)	11 (1.4%)	3 (0.4%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (3.3%)	17.9	861^st of 1009 public elementary schools	14.7%		10.4	947^th of 1018 public elementary schools	7.0%	86	15.9	21.6	22.3				19.8	30.2	34.3	26.9				30.2	21.4	15.7	29.2				22.6					$13,875	$1,496	$11,448
Larose Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	864 Willoughby ST	Memphis	38126	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-7848	316	17	18.5		0 (0.0%)	307 (97.2%)	5 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.3%)	4.4	1000^th of 1009 public elementary schools	0.9%		4.5	1012^th of 1018 public elementary schools	0.6%	12	6.8	11.6	12.1				10.0	11.4	13.0	9.1				11.4	6.8	11.1	15.2				10.7					$16,651	$1,606	$13,802
KIPP Memphis Collegiate Elementary	Public, Charter	K-5	230 Henry AVE	Memphis	38107	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 791-9391	444	30	15.0		2 (0.5%)	418 (94.1%)	21 (4.7%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	24.8	795^th of 1009 public elementary schools	21.2%		22.4	818^th of 1018 public elementary schools	19.6%	23	32.9	13.6	33.9				26.8	34.3	28.8	33.3				32.2	20.0	22.4	38.7				26.6					$13,662	$1,518	$11,777
Bruce Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	581 S Bellevue Blvd	Memphis	38104	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-4495	481	33	14.7		9 (1.9%)	402 (83.6%)	54 (11.2%)	8 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	7 (1.5%)	12.5	915^th of 1009 public elementary schools	9.3%		14.8	897^th of 1018 public elementary schools	11.9%	18		12.5	26.0				13.3	21.5	20.3	30.6				23.6	17.9	20.3	18.0				18.8					$15,528	$1,613	$12,743
Ida B. Wells Academy Elementary School/Middle School	Public	K-8	995 S Lauderdale St	Memphis	38126	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-3210	98	16	6.1		0 (0.0%)	94 (95.9%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (3.1%)	15.7	877^th of 1009 public elementary schools	13.1%		23.3	809^th of 1018 public elementary schools	20.5%	68				22.2	14.3	28.6	27.6				22.2		21.4	25.0				22.2	35.7	28.6	28.9	18.5	35.7	14.3	21.8	$29,906	$1,375	$27,032
Caldwell-Guthrie	Public	PK, KG-8	951 Chelsea AVE	Memphis	38107	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(901) 416-5300	0																		(n/a)																										$14,974	$1,564	$12,858
Cummings Elementary/Middle	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-8	1037 Cummings St	Memphis	38106	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(901) 416-7810	267	23	11.5		0 (0.0%)	257 (96.3%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.6%)	8	962^nd of 1009 public elementary schools	4.7%		12.3	927^th of 1018 public elementary schools	8.9%	35	17.1	7.9	33.3	9.8	8.9		12.2	7.5	17.9	22.2	12.2	13.3		12.6		10.5	13.9	9.8	6.7		7.7	5.0	8.9			$15,100	$1,238	$12,674
Memphis Delta Preparatory	Public, Charter	K-5	1237 College ST	Memphis	38106	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 251-1010	381	32	12.0		0 (0.0%)	371 (97.4%)	6 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.0%)	7.3	973^rd of 1009 public elementary schools	3.6%		6.6	996^th of 1018 public elementary schools	2.2%	23	5.6	11.1					6.2	12.5	12.7	15.0				13.3	11.3	25.4	25.0				20.1					$7,538	$1,901	$5,271
Perea Elementary School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	1250 Vollintine AVE	Memphis	38107	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	Yes	No	No	Yes	(901) 203-6420	399	21	19.0		0 (0.0%)	390 (97.7%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.0%)	43.9	550^th of 1009 public elementary schools	45.5%		28	757^th of 1018 public elementary schools	25.6%	207	54.2	10.9	15.2				29.1	49.2	32.6	58.7				47.0	50.8	32.6	23.9				37.1					$17,079	$1,498	$14,830
A. B. Hill Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	345 East Olive AVE	Memphis	38106	Shelby County	Memphis-Shelby County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(901) 416-7844	544	37	14.7		3 (0.6%)	524 (96.3%)	5 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.7%)	8 (1.5%)	3.6	1006^th of 1009 public elementary schools	0.3%		3.5	1015^th of 1018 public elementary schools	0.3%	9	8.5		5.1					7.2		10.3				7.0		6.3	12.8				6.3					$14,480	$2,226	$11,177

Frequently Asked Questions about Downtown Elementary

What district is Downtown Elementary in?

Memphis-Shelby County Schools

Is Downtown Elementary a good school?

Downtown Elementary ranks in the bottom 14.7% of Tennessee elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of Downtown Elementary attend?

Students who attend Downtown Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Manassas High

How many students attend Downtown Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 784 students attended Downtown Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Downtown Elementary?

Students at Downtown Elementary are 91% African American, 3% Two or more races, 2% White, 2% Hispanic.

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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.