Nashville Collegiate Prep School

Nashville Collegiate Prep School is an alternative public charter school located in Nashville, TN, serving 837 students in grades K–10 and overseen by the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission, a district ranked 127 out of 141 districts in Tennessee. It is by far the largest of the nearby alternative schools compared here, with Merrol Hyde Magnet School enrolling 670, Harris-Hillman Special Education School 458, Tennessee School for the Blind 100, and Cora Howe School 78. Because the school serves only through grade 10, it has no reported graduation or dropout rate. Per-student spending for 2024–2025 was $13,855, with a student-teacher ratio of 18.5.

Academic proficiency is generally below both district and state averages. All-grades math proficiency is 19.8%, compared with 28.5% for the district and 43.0% statewide. ELA proficiency is 27.9%, close to the district's 28.3% but well behind the state's 40.6%. The most concerning pattern is middle school math, which holds near district levels in 3rd and 5th grades but falls to just 11.7% by 8th grade, versus 38.3% statewide. Tenth-grade end-of-course exams are also very low, with Geometry at 5.3%, English II at 14.3%, and Biology I at 11.8% proficient. An unusual bright spot is 9th-grade Biology I at 80% proficient — a likely sign that a small, stronger group of students takes that exam early.

There are some positive trends. Social Studies proficiency has more than tripled over three years, from 9.5% to 35.5%, and science improved to 29.1%. However, chronic absenteeism jumped from 20.3% to 27.2% in a single year, now above both the state rate of 18.3% and the district rate of 25.2%. Compared with nearby alternatives, the school sits in the middle: it outperforms specialized high-need schools like Cora Howe School and Tennessee School for the Blind, but trails far behind the high-performing magnet model of Merrol Hyde Magnet School, which posts near-90% proficiency in many subjects. The school's spending of $13,855 per student is higher than Merrol Hyde's $12,280 but far below the $19,269 at Harris-Hillman Special Education School and the $62,100 at Cora Howe.