The top reported proficiency rate is 40% in Science. The lowest is 32% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Union Grove Elementary School
Union Grove Elementary School serves students in prekindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school in the Blount County district, located just outside the small rural city of Friendsville in western Tennessee. Friendsville itself is a quiet, low-density community with an agricultural and residential character, historically tied to Quaker settlement and the marble quarrying industry. The town has seen essentially flat population growth for decades, and its built environment spreads along the state route that runs from Fort Loudoun Lake to the main highway. There is no traditional walkable commercial main street, and daily life centers on outdoor recreation, the historic Friends Meetinghouse, and the local elementary school. Pellissippi State Community College’s Blount County campus is also in Friendsville, but no public library branch or public transit system is present here. The school sits within the town itself rather than on a separate campus, which gives it an integrated place in the community.
Union Grove Elementary is a small school for its grade band, and its student body is predominantly white, with a modest share of Hispanic students and very small numbers of students from other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Data on the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch was not available, nor was information on students with individualized education programs or English learners, so a parent seeking a picture of economic diversity or special education support would need to ask the school directly.
On the state’s TNReady assessments, the school’s proficiency rates fell in the bottom quartile when compared with other Blount County districts. In math, roughly a third of students scored at the proficient level or above. In English language arts, just over a third reached that same benchmark. On the science assessment, the share was a little higher. These results are drawn from a single school year and cover grades three through five, the grades in this school that take state tests. The school is an elementary-only building, so there is no graduation rate to report, and no data on chronic absenteeism was available.
Because the school does not serve grades beyond five, it does not offer AP, dual-credit, or career and technical pathways that matter at the high school level. No program offerings of any kind were listed in the available data, so a parent interested in enrichment, magnet themes, or specialized curricula would need to learn what is available directly from the school or district.
The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes such as boundary adjustments, new leadership, or program overhauls, so the reader should not assume any major operational shift is underway.
Housing values in this area sit above the national median home value, though below the national price-to-income ratio, suggesting that homes are expensive relative to local incomes but not as far out of reach as in some parts of the country. The typical monthly mortgage payment, estimated at current interest rates, is substantial. The rental market is lean relative to what a buyer would pay. There are no signs of rapid new development or major housing construction in Friendsville, consistent with the town’s long period of very slow population growth.
For a family considering Union Grove Elementary, the school offers a small, rural setting where the school is woven into the town’s daily life. The academic proficiency numbers are below the middle of the county, which a parent may want to discuss with the school to understand the instructional approach and any supports in place. The lack of publicly available data on economic makeup and special programs means that some basic questions about student support and enrichment will require a direct conversation with the school or the Blount County district office.
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