Enrollment
429
Tennessee · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Portland, TN
Watt Hardison Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Watt Hardison Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 470402001865
👥 S:T ratio 39
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 Attendance 66
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Watt Hardison Elementary earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Tennessee median.
- #6 of 8
- public schools in Portland · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.3:1
- students per teacher
- 429
- students enrolled
Watt Hardison Elementary has class sizes near the Tennessee median. Computed live against every Tennessee school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Watt Hardison Elementary ranks #6 of 8 public schools in Portland, TN.
School address
District: Sumner County · Tennessee
NCES ID 470402001865 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 15.3:1 Tennessee avg
+0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Watt Hardison Elementary compares with Tennessee and U.S. medians
What stands out at Watt Hardison Elementary
Watt Hardison Elementary is a mid-sized elementary school in Portland, Tennessee, enrolling 429 students.
At 15.3:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Tennessee median, within a few percentage points of the 15.3:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
With 429 students, its enrollment sits close to the Tennessee median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,838 scored Tennessee schools.
Its student body is led by White (76%) and Hispanic or Latino (14%) (diversity index 41/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 429 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
13.8% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Among Portland's elementary schools, it stands alongside Clyde Riggs Elementary (301 students): Watt Hardison Elementary is larger than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (15.3:1 vs 14.3:1).
Sumner County also operates Gallatin Senior High School (1,644 students) and Beech Sr High School (1,477 students) alongside Watt Hardison 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 Watt Hardison Elementary compares
Watt Hardison 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 | 15.3:1 | ▼ 0% | 15.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 429 | top 55% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.3:1
Leaner classes than 44% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
429
Bigger than 52% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
- 0% above state mean
Top 56% in Tennessee - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
13.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$10,286
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 429 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.4 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 75.5%
Hispanic or Latino 14.2%
Two or More 5.8%
African American 4.0%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 75.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 40.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 40.5, Watt Hardison Elementary is more mixed than the Tennessee school average of 38.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sumner County, which includes Watt Hardison Elementary.
$10,286
Per student
-5%
vs Tennessee
Avg $10,822
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.0%
State 45.2%
Federal 12.8%
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 Watt Hardison Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallatin Senior High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Beech Sr High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hendersonville High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Portland High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Station Camp High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Watt Hardison Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,644
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 1,477
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 1,410
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 1,151
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 1,137
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar elementary schools in Portland
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary 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 (~429 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Watt Hardison Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Watt Hardison Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Sumner 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 Watt Hardison Elementary
How many students attend Watt Hardison Elementary?
Watt Hardison Elementary has 429 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Portland, TN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Watt Hardison Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Watt Hardison Elementary is 15.3:1, which is 0% higher than the Tennessee average of 15.3:1 and 3% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Watt Hardison Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Watt Hardison Elementary is White at 75.5% of enrollment, in Portland, TN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Watt Hardison Elementary?
Watt Hardison Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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).
How does Watt Hardison Elementary rank among public schools in Portland?
By Resource Investment Index, Watt Hardison Elementary ranks #6 of 8 public schools in Portland, TN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Portland on the city page.
Is Watt Hardison Elementary a good school?
Watt Hardison Elementary earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Tennessee median. 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 Sumner County?
Besides Watt Hardison Elementary, Sumner County also operates Gallatin Senior High School (1,644 students), Beech Sr High School (1,477 students), and Hendersonville High School (1,410 students). See the Sumner 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.