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Spencer, Tennessee - 2 schools
An equity score of 63/100 ranks Van Buren County #6 of 140 districts in Tennessee (state average 38). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,176 per pupil, Van Buren County ranks #11 of 141 Tennessee districts by per-pupil spending (Tennessee districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
794
Total Enrollment
2
Schools
$12,176
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Van Buren County operates 2 public schools serving 794 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Tennessee. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 combined schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Van Buren County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,176 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 15 of 141 Tennessee districts by per-pupil spending. See how Tennessee compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 21.9% local, 55.6% state, and 22.4% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 63/100, ranked #6 of 140 in Tennessee against a state average of 38, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 378:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 22.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 98.2% White, 1.1% Hispanic or Latino, 0.4% African American across the district's schools.
Its largest campus is Van Buren Co High School, enrolling 384 students (51% of the district's total enrollment).
Van Buren Co High School accounts for 48.4% of all Van Buren County student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Van Buren County a distant remainder — means Van Buren County-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Van Buren County student-counselor ratio is 378:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Van Buren County chronic absenteeism rate is 22.3% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Van Buren County is typically wider than the Van Buren County-aggregate figure suggests.
Van Buren County has 2 schools, including 2 combined. Total enrollment is 794 students.
How much does Van Buren County spend per student?
Van Buren County spends $12,176 per student. The district has an equity score of 63/100, ranking #6 in Tennessee.
What is the demographic composition of Van Buren County?
Van Buren County students are 98.2% White, 1.1% Hispanic or Latino, 0.4% African American, 0.3% Asian, averaged across 2 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Van Buren County?
Van Buren County has an equity score of 63/100, ranking #6 out of 140 districts in Tennessee.