Tennessee · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best-Resourced School Districts in Tennessee

Top 50 districts ranked by average school quality score, based on student-teacher ratios, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.

Compiled by PlainSchools, Education-data publisher · August 11, 2026

The ranking in one line

Franklin Ssd in Franklin leads Tennessee's districts with an average school quality score of 65.3/100 across 8 schools.

65.3/100
top district score (grade B-): 8
schools in Franklin Ssd: 3,190
students in the top district: 48/100
average across the top 50

#	District	Grade	Students	Schools	Avg S:T	Per-Pupil $	Avg Quality
1	Franklin SsdFranklin	B-	3,190	8	10.7:1	$18,909	65.3
2	BradfordBradford	C	615	2	14.9:1	$12,608	58.5
3	Hollow Rock - BrucetonBruceton	C	658	2	12.3:1	$10,246	58
4	ColliervilleCollierville	C	9,259	10	15.7:1	$11,787	55.6
5	West Carroll Sp DistAtwood	C-	837	3	11.3:1	$11,840	54.7
6	MckenzieMckenzie	C-	1,288	3	14.2:1	$9,911	53.3
7	Williamson CountyFranklin	C-	42,171	50	14.5:1	$11,899	51.9
8	Gibson Co Sp DistDyer	C-	3,962	9	15.2:1	$10,106	51.8
9	Coffee CountyManchester	C-	4,395	10	13.2:1	$11,597	51.1
10	Obion CountyUnion City	C-	3,113	7	12:1	$11,934	51
11	Clay CountyCelina	C-	1,097	3	13.1:1	$11,695	51
12	Henry CountyParis	C-	3,014	7	14.2:1	$11,140	50.6
13	MilanMilan	C-	1,996	4	11:1	$11,511	50
14	DyersburgDyersburg	D	2,613	4	13.5:1	$12,650	49.8
15	Blount CountyMaryville	D	10,234	21	16.3:1	$12,370	49.5
16	Lauderdale CountyRipley	D	3,413	7	13.5:1	$12,162	49.4
17	Henderson CountyLexington	D	4,054	9	14.2:1	$10,487	49.3
18	Warren CountyMcminnville	D	6,477	12	12.4:1	$10,299	48.8
19	GreenevilleGreeneville	D	2,997	7	13.5:1	$12,806	48.4
20	Rutherford CountyMurfreesboro	D	50,707	50	15.7:1	$10,708	48.3
21	White CountySparta	D	3,872	8	14.3:1	$10,161	47.9
22	Overton CountyLivingston	D	3,102	8	14.5:1	$10,047	47.9
23	Grundy CountyAltamont	D	1,789	6	16.2:1	$10,370	47.5
24	LexingtonLexington	D	884	2	14.2:1	$12,031	47.5
25	GermantownGermantown	D	6,026	7	14.6:1	$11,689	46.9
26	Hickman CountyCenterville	D	3,175	9	13:1	$11,938	46.8
27	Rhea CountyDayton	D	4,091	7	14.1:1	$11,563	46.7
28	AthensAthens	D	1,802	5	17.2:1	$11,378	46.6
29	Weakley CountyDresden	D	3,987	10	13.6:1	$11,298	46.5
30	Benton CountyCamden	D	2,163	6	13.1:1	$11,411	46.3
31	BartlettBartlett	D	8,946	10	16.1:1	$11,266	46.3
32	Greene CountyGreeneville	D	6,265	17	13.5:1	$10,693	46.2
33	Crockett CountyAlamo	D	2,004	5	12.6:1	$9,946	46.2
34	Johnson CityJohnson City	D	8,001	12	14.3:1	$12,230	46.1
35	Van Buren CountySpencer	D	794	2	13.3:1	$12,612	46
36	Dickson CountyDickson	D	8,129	17	11.6:1	$10,729	45.7
37	Cocke CountyNewport	D	4,339	12	13.9:1	$11,098	45.7
38	Hamilton CountyChattanooga	D	45,902	81	15.8:1	$14,785	45.6
39	Hardeman County SchoolsBolivar	D	3,332	9	13.4:1	$11,701	45.4
40	Johnson CountyMountain City	D	4,971	8	15.5:1	$8,198	45.4
41	OneidaOneida	D	1,463	3	17.8:1	$10,564	45.3
42	Roane CountyKingston	D	6,344	18	13.8:1	$12,003	45.2
43	Giles CountyPulaski	D	3,670	8	12.7:1	$11,237	45.1
44	Mcnairy CountySelmer	D	3,831	9	11.4:1	$11,456	45.1
45	ArlingtonArlington	D	4,803	4	16.5:1	$10,924	45
46	LakelandLakeland	D	2,132	2	18.1:1	$10,858	45
47	Haywood CountyBrownsville	D	2,721	7	10.6:1	$13,014	44.7
48	MurfreesboroMurfreesboro	D	9,408	13	15:1	$11,626	44.6
49	Franklin CountyWinchester	D	5,004	11	14.9:1	$11,602	44.5
50	Lawrence CountyLawrenceburg	D	7,032	13	15.4:1	$10,410	44.5

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best school districts in Tennessee? ▼

The top-ranked district in Tennessee is Franklin Ssd in Franklin with 3,190 students across 8 schools. Average quality score: 65.3/100. Rankings are based on average school quality scores from NCES data.

How are district rankings calculated? ▼

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES data: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be ranked.

How many school districts are in Tennessee? ▼

Tennessee has 50+ school districts serving 994,264 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 15.3:1.

Explore More for Tennessee

All Schools → Best Schools → Highest Spending → Funding Equity → Absenteeism Data →

Methodology

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 metrics: student-teacher ratio, school counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism rates. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be included. This measures school-level resources, not test scores. Higher average scores indicate districts where schools generally have smaller classes, better counselor access, and lower absenteeism.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.