Summary:
Zip code 38040 covers Halls, Tennessee, and contains a single public high school: Halls High School, serving grades 9–12 with 339 students. The school is part of Lauderdale County Schools, a district ranked in the bottom 20% of Tennessee districts, yet Halls High stands out as a bright spot within that district.
Halls High School clearly excels at keeping students on track to graduation. Its 93.0% graduation rate outpaces both the district’s 81.3% and the state’s 90.5%, while its dropout rate of just 1.2% is far better than the district’s 4.3% and the state’s 6.7%. The school’s overall state ranking has improved for three straight years, from the 56th to the 62nd percentile. Academically, Halls High outperforms its district in every TNReady subject. It is essentially at the state average in Algebra II (36.7% vs. 37.3%) and English II (57.7% vs. 58.1%), and more than half of students are proficient in English II. These are notable strengths, especially given the district’s low overall performance.
However, there are serious concerns parents should know. Chronic absenteeism affects 31.6% of students—nearly one in three—compared to 22.3% for the district and 18.3% statewide. This is especially puzzling given the high graduation rate, suggesting many students miss significant class time but still manage to finish. The biggest academic red flag is Geometry: only 10.4% of students are proficient, far below the district’s 18.1% and the state’s 42.3%, and this represents a sharp drop from 21.1% the previous year. Several other test scores also dipped slightly. With per-student spending of $14,606, Halls High has solid resources, but improving attendance and revamping Geometry instruction will be critical to sustaining its upward trajectory.
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