Memphis Rise Academy, Memphis TN

Original Research by School Decision on Memphis Rise Academy

Memphis Rise Academy is a charter school in the Memphis-Shelby County Schools system, serving grades six through twelve. The school occupies a building on Raleigh Lagrange Road in Memphis, and its enrollment is sizable for a secondary school, drawing a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial Black student population and very small shares of white, Asian, and other racial groups. The school operates as a regular public charter school, meaning it is publicly funded but independently managed, with a charter authorizer overseeing its performance.

In terms of academic outcomes on the state’s TNReady assessments, the picture is mixed. In math, more than half of students scored at the proficient or above level across the tested grades, which is a solid result. Social studies fared similarly, with over half of students reaching proficiency. Science results landed around the halfway mark. English language arts, however, posted a lower proficiency rate, with roughly a quarter of students meeting the bar. That gap between math and ELA is a significant one, and a parent may want to follow up with the school about how literacy support is structured, particularly for students who enter in the middle grades.

When placed relative to other districts in Shelby County, Memphis Rise Academy’s overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades sits below the midpoint of the county districts. That is a straightforward positioning statement—it does not suggest the school is failing, but it places the school’s aggregate performance nearer the lower end of the county’s range. Because the comparison is at the district level and this is a single school, the context is useful but imperfect; the school’s results are being measured against entire district averages, not other individual schools.

Notably, no four-year graduation rate was reported in the data, even though the school serves grades nine through twelve. This is a meaningful gap. A school that serves high school grades normally has a reported graduation rate, so the absence is worth investigating. It may reflect a timing issue in data collection or a data-suppression rule, but it is not possible to tell from the available information. Similarly, data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, and course access were not provided, which limits the full picture of the school environment.

Memphis Rise Academy operates as part of the broader Memphis-Shelby County Schools district, which has been the subject of publicly reported discussions about school closures and a property tax referendum in recent years. However, no specific outcomes from those discussions were available in the data we had, so they are not addressed here beyond noting that the district context is one of ongoing public debate about resources and school footprint.

The school is located in a city with a rich set of cultural institutions and amenities. Tom Lee Park along the Mississippi River underwent a major renovation, Shelby Farms Park is a vast urban green space, and Overton Park houses the Memphis Zoo. Beale Street, the National Civil Rights Museum, Graceland, and the Stax Museum are all part of the civic landscape. The Memphis Area Transit Authority provides bus service, and the mayor appoints its board. These are the kinds of community assets that families may weigh when deciding where to live, though they are not specific to the school itself.

For a family considering Memphis Rise Academy, the core takeaway is a charter school with a large, mostly Hispanic student body, where math and social studies proficiency outpace English language arts by a considerable margin. The school’s overall academic profile, as measured by state tests, is below the middle of Shelby County districts. The absence of graduation rate data is a notable blind spot, and anyone evaluating this school would want to ask the school directly about its graduation outcomes, college-going rates, and the academic supports it offers to students who are not yet proficient in reading and writing.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

85-89%Cohort of 102 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

389 schools plotted. 19 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grades 3-853%

School 53% · District 23% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 28 pts above county median

English language arts

Grades 3-824%

School 24% · District 24% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 12 pts below state median · even with county median

Science

Grades 3-849%

School 49% · District 27% · ▲ 23 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Social studies

Grades 3-858%

School 58% · District 26% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

This schoolMemphis-Shelby County Schools, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income43%12 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income22%Higher-income19%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income14%Higher-income20%7 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income23%Higher-income26%4 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income63%Higher-income68%4 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income62%Higher-income43%19 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income18%Higher-income41%24 pp gap

Grades 3-8Lower-income55%Higher-income51%4 pp gap