Enrollment
468
Tennessee · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Pinson, TN
South Elementary
Federal NCES profile for South Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 470258000085
👥 S:T ratio 25
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 6
📋 Attendance 53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
South Elementary earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 89% of Tennessee schools.
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.7:1
- large classes for Tennessee
- 468
- students enrolled
South Elementary has class sizes larger than 89% of Tennessee schools. Computed live against every Tennessee school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Madison County · Tennessee
NCES ID 470258000085 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.7:1
vs 15.3:1 Tennessee avg
+22% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How South Elementary compares with Tennessee and U.S. medians
What stands out at South Elementary
South Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Pinson, Tennessee, enrolling 468 students.
Class loads run heavy: 18.7:1 is larger than about 89% of Tennessee schools and 22% above the 15.3:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
With 468 students, its enrollment sits close to the Tennessee median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,838 scored Tennessee schools.
Its student body is led by White (66%) and Hispanic or Latino (13%) (diversity index 53/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 468 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.6% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 21.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Madison County also operates North Side High School (903 students) and Northeast Middle School (804 students) alongside South Elementary.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How South Elementary compares
South Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Tennessee and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Tennessee | Tennessee avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.7:1 | ▲ 22% | 15.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 468 | top 49% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18.7:1
Leaner classes than 21% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
468
Bigger than 57% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
18.7:1
students per teacher
- 22% above state mean
Top 89% in Tennessee - lower ratio than 11% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
18.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$10,363
per pupil, district-wide
- below Tennessee avg of $10,822
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 468 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
29
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 65.6%
Hispanic or Latino 12.6%
African American 12.4%
Two or More 9.2%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 65.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 53.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 53.0, South Elementary is more mixed than the Tennessee school average of 38.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Madison County, which includes South Elementary.
$10,363
Per student
-4%
vs Tennessee
Avg $10,822
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 39.3%
State 39.1%
Federal 21.6%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How South Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Side High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Northeast Middle School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Thelma Barker Elementary | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| South Side High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Community Montessori School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to South Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 903
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 804
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 776
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 756
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 665
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Tennessee, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~468 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~18.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on South Elementary's federal record.
- Compare South Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Madison County's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about South Elementary
How many students attend South Elementary?
South Elementary has 468 students enrolled. It is a public school in Pinson, TN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at South Elementary is 18.7:1, which is 22% higher than the Tennessee average of 15.3:1 and 19% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of South Elementary?
The largest demographic group at South Elementary is White at 65.6% of enrollment, in Pinson, TN. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 53.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for South Elementary?
South Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is South Elementary a good school?
South Elementary earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 89% of Tennessee schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Madison County?
Besides South Elementary, Madison County also operates North Side High School (903 students), Northeast Middle School (804 students), and Thelma Barker Elementary (776 students). See the Madison County district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.