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Holston Middle School

Q: Is Holston Middle School a good school?

Holston Middle School ranks 362 nd of 594 Tennessee middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

362^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 594 Tennessee Middle Schools

Better than 39% of Tennessee middle schools

Summary

Holston Middle School serves 461 students in grades 6-8 and is part of Knox County Schools in Knoxville, TN. The school currently holds a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger, ranking in the 39th percentile statewide (362nd out of 594 Tennessee middle schools), placing it in the lower-middle range compared to other schools in the state.

Academically, Holston presents a complex picture for parents to understand. Overall math and ELA proficiency lag behind both district and state averages, and the school trails several nearby options like Halls Middle School, Gibbs Middle School, and Gresham Middle School. A striking weakness is 8th-grade general math, where only 9.2% of students are proficient—far below the district average of 30.2%. However, the school posts a 76% proficiency rate in Algebra I, creating a "two-schools" dynamic where a select group of students thrives while the majority struggle. Chronic absenteeism is also a concern at 25.5%, which is worse than the district average of 19.4%.

Looking deeper, Holston has shown real improvement since 2022-23, though from a low base. There are significant equity concerns, particularly for students from low-income families and those in special education, where proficiency rankings have recently fallen to the bottom 10th percentile. Positives exist too: Social Studies is a relative strength at 46% proficiency, and the school clearly outperforms Vine Middle/Magnet School and Whittle Springs Middle School in most subjects. The challenge for Holston Middle School—which spends about $15,855 per pupil, more than several higher-performing neighbors—is ensuring that its resources lift outcomes for all students, not just a select few.

461

Students ?

13.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,855

Per pupil spending ?

44.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

600 Chilhowee Drive
Knoxville, TN 37924

(865) 594-1300

District: Knox County Schools

Students who attend Holston Middle School usually attend:

High:

Gibbs High School

Feeder schools for Holston Middle School:

Elementary:

Ritta Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

53.8%

African American:

30.6%

Hispanic:

10.0%

See top rated Tennessee middle schools

Compare Holston Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 63rd percentile in 2015 → 39th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Tennessee average (35% vs 44% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (26% vs 18% Tennessee)

!Ranking has slipped — down 24 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school35%

District avg48%

Tennessee avg44%

362^nd of 594

Tennessee public middle schools ?

Bottom 39%▼ down 10 pts since 2017

From bottom 49% (2017) to bottom 39% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

13^th of 17Middle Schools in the Knox County Schools

78^th of 141Knox 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
2026	40.4	362 of 594	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	40.5	344 of 583	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	40.1	337 of 587	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.5	371 of 594	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	29.8	396 of 569	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.2	392 of 576	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.4	386 of 574	32.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	64.4	145 of 563	74.2%	★★★★☆
2017	49.5	186 of 362	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2015	63.4	183 of 492	62.8%	★★★☆☆
2014	54.8	220 of 485	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2013	54.8	257 of 475	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	56.4	219 of 466	53.0%	★★★☆☆
2011	49.2	254 of 462	45.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	60.9	160 of 435	63.2%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	31.6	215 of 328	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.0	220 of 312	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	37.0	170 of 318	46.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.8	171 of 316	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.4	187 of 299	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.4	178 of 277	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	28.5	209 of 293	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	63.6	75 of 284	73.6%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	44.1	308 of 546	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.6	306 of 554	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	40.4	322 of 560	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.4	355 of 552	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	31.8	363 of 538	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.7	327 of 529	38.2%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	28.1	225 of 302	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.6	230 of 286	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.9	194 of 285	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.5	193 of 285	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.3	123 of 275	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2021	51.7	93 of 261	64.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	54.6	77 of 228	66.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	67.0	54 of 219	75.3%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	21.1	411 of 478	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	12.5	468 of 490	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.2	406 of 510	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	34.1	328 of 514	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	25.2	398 of 495	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.2	367 of 483	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	33.1	347 of 490	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	64.3	119 of 481	75.3%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	34.8	370 of 550	32.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	33.5	373 of 560	33.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.9	383 of 557	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	26.1	400 of 540	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.1	380 of 529	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.0	375 of 523	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	21.3	318 of 349	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	35.5	195 of 332	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.6	170 of 299	43.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	24.2	250 of 288	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.3	254 of 260	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	23.1	213 of 238	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	35.0	142 of 222	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.6	110 of 279	60.6%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	48.7	235 of 494	52.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	48.2	236 of 492	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	41.3	278 of 504	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.3	311 of 503	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.8	326 of 500	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.7	350 of 496	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	46.7	233 of 484	51.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.8	152 of 481	68.4%	★★★☆☆

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 (2026)52nd percentile+13 vs school

Female (2025)44th percentile+3 vs school

African American (2026)34th percentile-5 vs school

Male (2025)33rd percentile-8 vs school

Hispanic (2026)25th percentile-14 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)14th percentile-25 vs school

Special Education (2026)9th percentile-30 vs school

By subject vs Tennessee (2025-2026) ?

Algebra I76%+44 vs state

Social Studies46%-5 vs state

Science37%-10 vs state

English Language Arts30%-11 vs state

Mathematics26%-17 vs state

1.8

4 ratings · 4 written reviews

5★0

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★3

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What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, August 11, 2015

This school doesn't follow a students IEP as they are required to do. The teachers are very rude & look down on students if they are not in the top ranking grades in their class. Close Quote

by a student on FaceBook
Wednesday, January 11, 2012

im a student at holston middle school.i found my best friends there.i will admit some of the teachers are hard to like .but i had wonderful math and science teachers.my favorite related arts classes were gym and art.we have a great sports like basketball and soccer.they even have sports like volleyball, golf or football.there are some fights here but thats the students fault .you cant blame the teachers for that.we have dances after school on some holidays.they have tutoring to.no matter what thers something to do here. Close Quote

by a citizen
Monday, October 3, 2011

My grandchild was beaten by another child and the administration didn't contact their parent or other emergency contact even though there were injuries. On the same date of the incident there were multiple fights at the school with injuries. The school administration is a poor example of staff and I believe with all of the fights with injuries that the children are in danger at Holston Middle School. Why are the county executives not doing something? Close Quote

by a parent
Thursday, May 12, 2011

This is the worst school my children every attended. They went from A & B students to D students within the first year. Teachers were rude and disrespectful. With my second daughter I was there every year for something. At one point, I had a teacher to tell me he was asking my daughter if she wanted to sit in the hall way by the time she was walking into the classroom. I asked why. His response was she was not easy to teach. I have to agree he did not have the easiest group of kids in that class, but no excuse. I went on to ask if she was causing trouble, he stated no everyone else would not leave her alone. So punish my child and her education because of everyone else. This was just the minor stuff. If I had more children I would move before sending my child to this school. I live about 25 minutes from this school. I have found out that people who live within minutes are not going to this school, and it is due to rezoning not a transfer. Close Quote

Schools Near Holston Middle School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				TNReady Mathematics (2026)				TNReady English Language Arts (2026)				TNReady Algebra I (2026)		TNReady Science (2026)				TNReady Social Studies (2026)				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 (2016)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	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 8th Grade	TNReady Algebra I 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
Holston Middle School	Public	6-8	600 Chilhowee Drive	Knoxville	37924	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(865) 594-1300	476	36	13.2	44.4%	238 (50.0%)	153 (32.1%)	51 (10.7%)	8 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.5%)	40.4	362^nd of 594 public middle schools	39.1%		40.5	344^th of 583 public middle schools	41.0%	18	32.9	33.6	9.2	25.7	37.7	33.3	19.9	30.0	76.0	76.0	39.7	37.5	34.6	37.2	44.5	48.6	44.9	46.0	$15,855	$1,513	$13,493
Whittle Springs Middle School	Public	6-8	2700 White Oak Lane	Knoxville	37917	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(865) 594-4474	467	38	12.2	83.6%	147 (31.5%)	92 (19.7%)	190 (40.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (7.9%)	30.9	429^th of 594 public middle schools	27.8%		24.8	455^th of 583 public middle schools	22.0%	26	26.9	23.6	17.1	22.4	25.5	28.6	13.9	22.0	53.8	53.8	32.4	54.3	27.4	36.9	44.8	48.0	31.1	40.6	$16,459	$1,952	$13,660
Vine Middle/Magnet School	Public, Magnet	6-8	1807 Martin Luther King Jr AVE	Knoxville	37915	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	Yes	No	Yes	(865) 594-4461	393	35	11.3	89.5%	61 (15.5%)	234 (59.5%)	68 (17.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	28 (7.1%)	10.7	540^th of 594 public middle schools	9.1%		7.6	562^nd of 583 public middle schools	3.6%	22	6.4	18.3		8.5	13.8	5.4	8.3	9.1	72.7	72.7	22.3	25.0	20.8	22.5	19.4	30.8	19.3	22.8	$19,838	$2,151	$16,777
Tennessee School for the Deaf Middle School	Public	6-8	2527 Island Home Boulevard	Knoxville	37920	Knox County	Tennessee Schools for the Deaf	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(865) 579-2507	0																		(n/a)								8.3			10.0			12.5	20.0			26.1
Tennessee Virtual Middle School	Public, Virtual	6-8	1924 Dutch Valley Drive	Knoxville	37918	Knox County	Union County Schools	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(865) 992-9026	914	41	22.5		512 (56.0%)	252 (27.6%)	58 (6.3%)	11 (1.2%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	76 (8.3%)	21.2	479^th of 594 public middle schools	19.4%		22	464^th of 583 public middle schools	20.4%	15	9.9	12.3	16.9	13.2	23.5	19.4	24.1	22.3			34.0	35.4	34.1	34.5	19.7	33.2	28.5	27.4	$5,608	$151	$5,446
Knoxville Preparatory School	Public, Charter	6-7	967 Irwin Street	Knoxville	37917	Knox County	Knox County Schools	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(865) 394-8989	0											12.7	520^th of 594 public middle schools	12.5%					(n/a)	11.4	19.4		16.4	11.4	16.4		14.5			18.2	28.4		24.6	22.7	26.0		24.8	$30,780	$4,548	$25,319
Gresham Middle School	Public	6-8	500 Gresham Road	Knoxville	37918	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	No	(865) 689-1430	801	48	16.6	55.1%	463 (57.8%)	141 (17.6%)	121 (15.1%)	6 (0.7%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	69 (8.6%)	55.6	250^th of 594 public middle schools	57.9%		50.8	268^th of 583 public middle schools	54.0%	18	43.3	37.2	26.0	36.2	41.9	33.5	31.9	35.9			51.3	41.8	39.5	44.3	56.3	55.2	49.6	53.7	$12,673	$1,164	$10,905
South Doyle Middle School	Public	6-8	3900 Decatur Road	Knoxville	37920	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(865) 579-2133	799	60	13.3	64.8%	531 (66.5%)	126 (15.8%)	76 (9.5%)	6 (0.8%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.4%)	55 (6.9%)	47	310^th of 594 public middle schools	47.8%		37	374^th of 583 public middle schools	35.8%	64	35.4	31.5	22.5	30.5	38.9	34.0	27.9	33.8	67.4	67.4	41.2	41.3	36.8	39.8	53.6	52.4	43.3	49.9	$14,454	$1,419	$12,345
Halls Middle School	Public	6-8	4317 East Emory Road	Knoxville	37938	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	No	(865) 922-7494	996	65	15.3	36.5%	812 (81.5%)	22 (2.2%)	128 (12.9%)	7 (0.7%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	24 (2.4%)	59	225^th of 594 public middle schools	62.1%		55.2	232^nd of 583 public middle schools	60.2%	7	41.1	40.4	24.4	36.3	35.3	35.8	38.7	36.7	72.2	72.5	51.6	39.9	46.9	46.1	59.6	54.7	57.7	57.4	$12,662	$980	$11,237
Gibbs Middle School	Public	6-8	7625 Tazewell	Corryton	37901	Knox County	Knox County Schools	No	No	No	No	(865) 594-1800	614	34	18.0		551 (89.7%)	10 (1.6%)	22 (3.6%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (4.6%)	56.5	245^th of 594 public middle schools	58.8%		53.3	247^th of 583 public middle schools	57.6%	2	39.1	31.7	24.2	31.9	42.1	40.2	29.0	36.9	77.8	77.8	46.2	47.6	37.2	43.5	59.4	60.6	57.8	59.2	$12,774	$730	$11,390

Frequently Asked Questions about Holston Middle School

What high school do graduates of Holston Middle School attend?

Students who attend Holston Middle School usually go on to attend Gibbs High School

What district is Holston Middle School in?

Knox County Schools

How many students attend Holston Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 461 students attended Holston Middle School.

What is the racial makeup of Holston Middle School?

Students at Holston Middle School are 54% White, 31% African American, 10% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races.

Is Holston Middle School a good school?

Holston Middle School ranks 362^nd of 594 Tennessee middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Rate Holston Middle School!

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Latest Tennessee data All new data »

2025–26 TNReady test scoresAug 25, 2026

2024–25 dropout ratesApr 2, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataFeb 27, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataDec 18, 2025

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.