Summary:
Zip code 38366 in Pinson, Tennessee is home to a single public elementary school: South Elementary School, which serves 468 students in grades PK–5 and operates within the Jackson-Madison County Schools district. South Elementary stands out as a clear bright spot in its district — while the district ranks in the bottom 5% of Tennessee districts (134th out of 141), South Elementary School ranks 494th out of 1,019 Tennessee elementary schools, placing it near the statewide middle with a 3-star rating.
Academically, South Elementary School far outpaces its district across every tested subject. In 2025–2026, math proficiency was 41.1% compared to the district's 26.1%, ELA was 41.4% versus 25.8%, and science was 50.7% versus 28.7%. Against state averages, the school is slightly below in math (41.1% vs. 43.0%), slightly above in ELA (41.4% vs. 40.6%), and well above in science (50.7% vs. 46.9%). The school's strongest results come in 5th grade, where students exceed the state in all three subjects — especially math, at 63.2% proficiency versus 47.4% statewide. Third grade is the weakest area, trailing the state by 8–9 points in every subject.
One concern is the significant drop in math proficiency, which fell from 52.0% in 2024–2025 to 41.1% in 2025–2026, a decline of nearly 11 points while state math scores rose slightly. ELA and science both improved during the same period. Chronic absenteeism stands at 20.8% — better than the district's 28.2% but worse than the state's 18.3%. The school's statewide ranking has also slipped over three years, from the 75th percentile in 2023–2024 to the 52nd percentile in 2025–2026. Per-student spending is $13,003. Overall, South Elementary School is a solid mid-tier school that gives families in Pinson a strong option, with particular strengths in science and upper-grade instruction, but recent math trends and early-grade performance are worth monitoring.
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