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John Colemon Elementary

Q: Is John Colemon Elementary a good school?

John Colemon Elementary ranks 642 nd of 1009 Tennessee elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

642^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,009 Tennessee Elementary Schools

Better than 36% of Tennessee elementary schools

Summary

John Colemon Elementary is a public elementary school in Smyrna, Tennessee, serving 625 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the Rutherford County School District, which is ranked 39 out of 139 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating.

While John Colemon Elementary has seen steady increases in per-student spending, reaching $16,472 in 2023-2024, the school's academic performance has been a concern. The school consistently underperforms the Rutherford County and Tennessee state averages in proficiency rates for Math, English Language Arts, and Science across all grade levels. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the school's proficiency rates were 34.3% in Math, 32.8% in ELA, and 42% in Science, compared to the Rutherford County averages of 51.7%, 45.9%, and 53.9%, respectively. Additionally, the school has seen a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism rates, rising from 9.9% in 2022-2023 to 18.9% in 2023-2024, significantly higher than the Rutherford County average of 11.9%.

When compared to other elementary schools in the Rutherford County district, John Colemon Elementary generally underperforms in terms of test scores and overall school rankings. Schools like Rocky Fork Elementary, Wilson Elementary, and Stewartsboro Elementary consistently outperform John Colemon Elementary across various academic measures. However, the Thurman Francis Arts Academy, a public magnet school in the district, stands out as an exceptional performer, ranking among the top 3 elementary schools in the state, suggesting the potential benefits of a specialized, arts-focused curriculum.

861

Students ?

13.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,018

Per pupil spending ?

69.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1098 Espey DR
Smyrna, TN 37167

(615) 904-6740

District: Rutherford County

Students who attend John Colemon Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Smyrna Middle School
High:	Smyrna High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

55.6%

White:

22.5%

African American:

14.1%

See top rated Tennessee elementary schools

Compare John Colemon Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 42nd percentile in 2014 → 36th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Tennessee average (36% vs 42% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 6 percentile points since 2014

!Near the bottom of Rutherford County's ranking

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school36%

District avg50%

Tennessee avg42%

642^nd of 1,009

Tennessee public elementary schools ?

Bottom 36%▲ up 13 pts since 2015

From bottom 23% (2015) to bottom 36% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

19^th of 23Elementary Schools in the Rutherford County

39^th of 139Rutherford County 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	37.2	642 of 1009	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.5	655 of 1018	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	48.4	492 of 1020	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	45.0	529 of 1000	47.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	52.6	407 of 983	58.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	42.8	545 of 985	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	38.7	603 of 997	39.5%	★★☆☆☆
2017	19.1	591 of 646	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	34.1	659 of 855	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	45.9	491 of 853	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2013	56.2	455 of 846	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	34.6	600 of 820	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	40.3	548 of 818	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	15.5	733 of 809	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	56.9	172 of 498	65.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	56.1	181 of 498	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	67.6	120 of 500	76.0%	★★★★☆
2022	63.2	122 of 483	74.7%	★★★★☆
2021	69.8	85 of 411	79.3%	★★★★☆
2019	75.3	65 of 404	83.9%	★★★★☆
2018	56.6	150 of 450	66.7%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	35.1	147 of 211	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	26.2	153 of 178	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	33.1	121 of 164	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	32.8	120 of 165	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	56.6	22 of 101	78.2%	★★★★☆
2019	21.7	65 of 66	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	32.2	696 of 986	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.3	714 of 990	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	56.6	363 of 989	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.5	394 of 975	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.5	290 of 945	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	37.1	589 of 926	36.4%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	40.7	246 of 424	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	26.6	328 of 415	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	46.7	188 of 387	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	45.9	179 of 363	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.6	117 of 324	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	41.1	132 of 250	47.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.7	187 of 319	41.4%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	65.2	202 of 843	76.0%	★★★★☆
2024	47.0	430 of 853	49.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	54.0	342 of 865	60.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.0	226 of 858	73.7%	★★★★☆
2021	70.9	124 of 823	84.9%	★★★★☆
2019	59.3	245 of 821	70.2%	★★★★☆
2018	43.2	495 of 877	43.6%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	42.3	568 of 984	42.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.5	575 of 991	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.0	611 of 987	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.0	635 of 980	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	42.6	492 of 941	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	47.6	437 of 916	52.3%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	48.0	413 of 840	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.9	387 of 847	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.7	285 of 852	66.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	51.3	358 of 844	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	56.7	294 of 844	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	32.9	581 of 812	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	45.5	434 of 841	48.4%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)76th percentile+40 vs school

African American (2025)65th percentile+29 vs school

White (2025)51st percentile+14 vs school

Male (2025)42nd percentile+6 vs school

Hispanic (2025)42nd percentile+6 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)30th percentile-6 vs school

Female (2025)29th percentile-7 vs school

By subject vs Tennessee (2024-2025) ?

Science42%-4 vs state

Mathematics34%-8 vs state

English Language Arts33%-6 vs state

★

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Schools Near John Colemon 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 All Grades	TNReady English Language Arts 3rd Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 4th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts 5th Grade	TNReady English Language Arts All Grades	TNReady Science 3rd Grade	TNReady Science 4th Grade	TNReady Science 5th Grade	TNReady Science All Grades	TNReady Social Studies 6th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
John Colemon Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1098 Espey DR	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 904-6740	625	46	13.7		197 (31.5%)	119 (19.0%)	247 (39.5%)	23 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.8%)	34 (5.4%)	37.2	642^nd of 1009 public elementary schools	36.4%		36.5	655^th of 1018 public elementary schools	35.7%	13	29.5	34.3	39.0	34.3	25.0	36.3	37.8	32.8	31.8	47.5	47.8	42.0		$13,018	$1,012	$11,310
Smyrna Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1001 Sam Davis RD	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 904-6725	767	57	13.4		179 (23.3%)	74 (9.6%)	453 (59.1%)	31 (4.0%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.3%)	27 (3.5%)	43.4	554^th of 1009 public elementary schools	45.1%		43.9	559^th of 1018 public elementary schools	45.1%	5	29.5	53.0	45.1	42.9	20.8	50.6	39.6	37.5	24.4	48.2	39.6	37.7		$15,585	$1,054	$13,673
Smyrna Primary	Public	PK, KG-5	200 Walnut ST	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 459-3161	597	38	15.7		198 (33.2%)	96 (16.1%)	190 (31.8%)	70 (11.7%)	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.0%)	36 (6.0%)	36.8	653^rd of 1009 public elementary schools	35.3%		37.1	646^th of 1018 public elementary schools	36.5%	7	31.6	36.2	31.3	33.0	27.4	43.6	35.4	35.4	31.6	42.6	47.5	40.6		$14,864	$817	$13,260
Springs Public Schools Tennessee Empower Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	198 Culbertson ST	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(615) 237-7170	0																		(n/a)														$12,287	$297	$11,162
David Youree Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	250 Todd LN	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 459-3492	725	50	14.5		183 (25.2%)	209 (28.8%)	245 (33.8%)	31 (4.3%)	4 (0.6%)	3 (0.4%)	50 (6.9%)	18.3	856^th of 1009 public elementary schools	15.2%		20.6	835^th of 1018 public elementary schools	18.0%	21	19.6	24.1	26.0	23.2	20.4	26.8	29.8	25.5	20.4	35.7	28.7	28.3		$13,611	$1,071	$11,704
Thurman Francis Arts Academy/Magnet School for the Arts	Public, Magnet	K-8	221 Todd LN	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	Yes	No	No	(615) 904-6715	662	43	15.5		450 (68.0%)	103 (15.6%)	42 (6.3%)	30 (4.5%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (5.1%)								(n/a)			94.8										94.8	$11,712	$348	$10,763
LaVergne Lake Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	201 David's Way	La Vergne	37086	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 904-6730	885	62	14.3		194 (21.9%)	251 (28.4%)	382 (43.2%)	23 (2.6%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (3.7%)	18.5	854^th of 1009 public elementary schools	15.4%		29.4	739^th of 1018 public elementary schools	27.4%	115	23.3	27.9	34.4	28.5	22.2	28.7	24.1	24.8	16.1	30.1	25.6	23.6		$12,904	$893	$11,224
Stewartsboro Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	10479 Old Nashville HWY	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	No	(615) 904-6705	800	53	15.2		405 (50.6%)	91 (11.4%)	223 (27.9%)	25 (3.1%)	4 (0.5%)	2 (0.3%)	50 (6.3%)	69.7	240^th of 1009 public elementary schools	76.2%		80.6	148^th of 1018 public elementary schools	85.5%	92	59.2	67.8	68.9	65.2	41.6	45.2	42.6	43.1	50.4	57.4	53.3	53.6		$12,992	$559	$11,705
Cedar Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	354 Chaney RD	Smyrna	37167	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 904-3777	902	64	14.0		257 (28.5%)	131 (14.5%)	439 (48.7%)	38 (4.2%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.2%)	34 (3.8%)	50.3	482^nd of 1009 public elementary schools	52.2%		53.1	435^th of 1018 public elementary schools	57.3%	47	36.8	49.6	42.9	43.2	37.4	49.6	35.3	40.8	45.2	47.9	43.7	45.6		$14,960	$980	$13,193
Roy L Waldron Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	125 Floyd Mayfield DR	La Vergne	37086	Rutherford County	Rutherford County	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 904-3785	1,332	84	15.8		263 (19.7%)	357 (26.8%)	644 (48.3%)	18 (1.4%)	5 (0.4%)	2 (0.2%)	43 (3.2%)	19.8	843^rd of 1009 public elementary schools	16.5%		18.6	856^th of 1018 public elementary schools	15.9%	13	19.7	27.5	21.9	23.0	18.3	30.0	22.6	23.5	31.5	32.5	35.1	33.0		$14,826	$1,216	$12,798

Frequently Asked Questions about John Colemon Elementary

What district is John Colemon Elementary in?

Rutherford County

Is John Colemon Elementary a good school?

John Colemon Elementary ranks 642^nd of 1009 Tennessee elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of John Colemon Elementary?

Students at John Colemon Elementary are 56% Hispanic, 23% White, 14% African American, 4% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

How many students attend John Colemon Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 861 students attended John Colemon Elementary.

What schools do graduates of John Colemon Elementary attend?

Students who attend John Colemon Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Smyrna Middle School
High : Smyrna High School

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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.