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R T Fisher Alternative School

Q: Is R T Fisher Alternative School a good school?

R T Fisher Alternative School ranks in the bottom 0.6% of Tennessee alternative schools.

Q: How many students attend R T Fisher Alternative School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 127 students attended R T Fisher Alternative School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of R T Fisher Alternative School?

Students at R T Fisher Alternative School are 62% White, 24% African American, 8% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races.

Public, Alternative Grades K-12

1013^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,019 Tennessee Alternative Schools

Better than 1% of Tennessee alternative schools

Summary

R T Fisher Alternative School is a small K-12 alternative school in Gallatin, Tennessee, serving 127 students within Sumner County Schools. With a student-to-teacher ratio of roughly 7–8 students per teacher, the school offers an unusually individualized learning environment compared to typical public schools. R T Fisher serves a challenging student population, and its mission appears focused on providing a supportive setting for students who have struggled in traditional school environments. While Sumner County Schools is a strong district—ranked in the 77th percentile statewide—this school's academic profile looks very different from the district's overall performance.

The most encouraging story at R T Fisher is its dramatic improvement in attendance. Chronic absenteeism has fallen from 44.9% in 2022–23 to just 10.1% in 2024–25, meaning the school now outperforms both Sumner County Schools (12.2%) and Tennessee (18.3%). This is also the best attendance record among nearby alternative programs, including Barry Tatum Academy (40.6%), Tennessee School for the Blind (25.0%), and Barry Tatum Virtual Learning Academy (22.5%). Improved attendance is often a leading indicator of stronger engagement and school climate, and this turnaround is a clear bright spot.

Academically, however, proficiency on state tests remains well below district and state averages. In the most recent testing year, mathematics proficiency was 8.2% compared to the district's 58.8%, and English language arts was 8.1% versus 51.1%. The school's strongest areas are English II (16.7%) and social studies (18.0%), but these still lag far behind. Within the same district, Merrol Hyde Magnet School—another "alternative" school with 670 students—posts near-universal proficiency, highlighting how much the "alternative" label can vary. Because R T Fisher's tested cohorts are very small, scores can swing substantially from year to year. The attendance gains may not yet be reflected in test scores, but they provide a hopeful foundation for future academic progress.

127

Students ?

8.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

87.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

455 North Boyers
Gallatin, TN 37066

(615) 451-6558

District: Sumner County Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

62.2%

African American:

24.4%

Hispanic:

7.9%

See top rated Tennessee elementary schools

Compare R T Fisher Alternative School to nearby alternative schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 8th percentile in 2023 → 4th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 8 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Tennessee average (11% vs 45% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (1st percentile)

!Biology I scores 44 pts below the Tennessee average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school11%

District avg57%

Tennessee avg45%

Elementary school

1,013^th of 1,019

Tennessee public elementary schools ?

Bottom 1%▼ down 4 pts since 2023

From bottom 5% (2023) to bottom 1% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

563^rd of 594

Tennessee public middle schools ?

Bottom 5%▼ down 2 pts since 2022

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

High school

382^nd of 400

Tennessee public high schools ?

Bottom 4%▲ up 2 pts since 2022

See the entire ranking list of Tennessee High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2Alternative Schools in the Sumner County Schools

33^rd of 141Sumner 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	3.9	1013 of 1019	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	23.3	807 of 1018	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	8.8	972 of 1020	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	2.1	848 of 849	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	7.7	563 of 594	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	31.6	408 of 583	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	12.1	525 of 587	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	10.4	546 of 594	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	10.1	528 of 569	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2022	28.4	366 of 495	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	31.7	392 of 550	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.5	487 of 557	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.9	485 of 540	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	3.3	492 of 494	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.6	494 of 504	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.6	493 of 503	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.6	484 of 500	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

High school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	8.9	382 of 400	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	8.5	378 of 389	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.4	373 of 392	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.9	370 of 384	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.0	348 of 358	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2022	4.7	344 of 350	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	18.4	285 of 308	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2025	8.3	357 of 368	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.7	351 of 366	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.2	329 of 359	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.4	330 of 349	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Tennessee percentile	Rating
2026	7.6	315 of 330	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	6.3	318 of 323	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.5	318 of 326	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	4.9	307 of 312	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

White (2026)<1st percentile~ school

Middle school

Male (2025)29th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2022)26th percentile+19 vs school

White (2026)<1st percentile-5 vs school

High school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)7th percentile+3 vs school

White (2026)5th percentile~ school

Male (2025)3rd percentile~ school

Female (2022)2nd percentile~ school

By subject vs Tennessee (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies18%-33 vs state

English II17%-41 vs state

English I15%-23 vs state

US History14%-28 vs state

Science10%-37 vs state

Mathematics8%-35 vs state

English Language Arts8%-32 vs state

Biology I5%-44 vs state

1.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a student
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

'like a juvinial jail, but you get to go home in the evenings'

school is falling apart, the staff acts like they are only there for a check, and it is filled with asbestos. no kidding, there is a door that says 'WARNING ASBESTOS do not enter with out proper gear' right next to the cafeteria that some students go in daily to get cleaning supplies (the kids that go here can be young as 6).the school its self is more than 50 years old and nothing new has been done to fix up things. celing tiles are falling and floor tires at coming up. if you child has to come here, it would be better to just send them to a futher away school Close Quote

Schools Near R T Fisher Alternative 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 ()				Ranking ()				TNReady Mathematics (2026)						TNReady English Language Arts (2026)					TNReady Algebra I (2026)		TNReady Algebra II (2026)		TNReady Biology I (2026)		TNReady US History (2026)		TNReady English I (2026)		TNReady English II (2026)		TNReady Geometry (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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	SchoolDigger Rating ()	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	Rank Change from Previous Year	TNReady Mathematics 3rd 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 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 Algebra I 9th Grade	TNReady Algebra I All Grades	TNReady Algebra II 11th Grade	TNReady Algebra II All Grades	TNReady Biology I 10th Grade	TNReady Biology I All Grades	TNReady US History 11th Grade	TNReady US History All Grades	TNReady English I 9th Grade	TNReady English I All Grades	TNReady English II 10th Grade	TNReady English II All Grades	TNReady Geometry 10th Grade	TNReady Geometry 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
R T Fisher Alternative School	Public, Alternative	K-12	455 North Boyers	Gallatin	37066	Sumner County	Sumner County Schools	No	No	No	No	(615) 451-6558	128	16	8.0		66 (51.6%)	39 (30.5%)	14 (10.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (7.0%)								(n/a)		9.1	6.7	12.5	6.9	8.2		6.7	18.8	6.7	8.1					7.1	5.3	14.3	14.3	16.7	14.7	18.2	16.7				18.8	13.3	9.5	6.7	18.8	23.3	18.0
Merrol Hyde Magnet School	Public, Magnet, Alternative	K-12	128 Township Drive	Hendersonville	37075	Sumner County	Sumner County Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(615) 264-6543	664	44	15.2		542 (81.6%)	17 (2.6%)	20 (3.0%)	67 (10.1%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	14 (2.1%)								(n/a)	95.0						94.0	94.0		91.5								88.6	88.6	94.9	94.9													$12,280	$241	$11,377
Barry Tatum Academy	Public, Alternative	4-12	415 Harding Drive	Lebanon	37087	Wilson County	Wilson County Schools	No	No	No	No	(615) 453-3400	85	27	3.1		45 (52.9%)	19 (22.4%)	18 (21.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.4%)								(n/a)						22.2					10.5	5.0		26.7	22.2					23.1	16.7	23.5	21.1						15.8				23.5	$32,700	$1,106	$31,170
Barry Tatum Virtual Learning Academy	Public, Virtual, Alternative	4-12	351 Stumpy Lane	Lebanon	37087	Wilson County	Wilson County Schools	No	No	Yes	No	(615) 453-3400	113	10	11.3		74 (65.5%)	14 (12.4%)	15 (13.3%)	7 (6.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.7%)								(n/a)			30.0	38.5	66.7	44.4		20.0	23.1	46.2	32.4	40.0	41.7	7.7	7.4					69.2	69.2	45.8	45.8	19.0	23.1	40.0	38.5	61.5	48.6	30.0	53.8	38.5	41.7	$13,257	$197	$13,007
Tennessee School For Blind	Public, Alternative	PK, KG-12	115 Stewarts Ferry Pike	Nashville	37214	Davidson County	Tennessee School for the Blind	No	No	No	Yes	(615) 231-7300	114	38	2.9		63 (55.3%)	27 (23.7%)	14 (12.3%)	8 (7.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.8%)								(n/a)						8.7																											25.0

Frequently Asked Questions about R T Fisher Alternative School

How many students attend R T Fisher Alternative School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 127 students attended R T Fisher Alternative School.

Is R T Fisher Alternative School a good school?

R T Fisher Alternative School ranks in the bottom 0.6% of Tennessee alternative schools.

What is the racial makeup of R T Fisher Alternative School?

Students at R T Fisher Alternative School are 62% White, 24% African American, 8% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races.

What district is R T Fisher Alternative School in?

Sumner County Schools

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Latest Tennessee data All new data »

2025–26 TNReady test scoresNewAug 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.