The top reported proficiency rate is 65% in Science. The lowest is 49% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Kingston Elementary
Kingston Elementary serves as one of the primary entry points for public education in Roane County, covering prekindergarten through fifth grade. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and its roughly eight hundred students make it a sizable elementary school for a small county-seat town. The school sits in Kingston, a compact community of modest population that functions as the governmental and historical center of Roane County, located at the confluence of the Clinch, Emory, and Tennessee rivers. The town has a traditional downtown anchored by the Roane County Courthouse, riverfront parks, and seasonal festivals, and while it is bisected by Interstate 40, its street life remains centered around those civic spaces rather than sprawling commercial corridors. The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston Fossil Plant is a longstanding industrial presence nearby, and the town’s population growth has been slow and stable.
Academically, the evidence points to a school where a solid majority of students meet state standards in science, while math and English language arts proficiency sits around the midway point. On the state’s TNReady assessments, roughly half of the tested students scored at the proficient or above level in math, and about half did so in ELA. Science performance was stronger, with roughly two out of three students reaching that bar. There is an older social studies result from a prior testing cycle that also sat near the halfway mark, but an assessment name change and cut-score change make that figure difficult to compare directly with current results. A parent looking at these numbers will see an elementary school where a meaningful share of students are not yet at the proficient level in core subjects, particularly in math and ELA, and may want to ask the school about the specific supports in place for students who are below that threshold. The school tested nearly all of its enrolled students in the tested grades, so the results reflect a full picture of the student body rather than a selected subset.
The student body is overwhelmingly white, with small Hispanic, Black, Asian, and multiracial populations. Income-based data such as free- or reduced-price meal eligibility was not reported, nor were counts of students with individualized education plans or English learners, so a parent cannot determine from this information alone the level of economic diversity or the share of students receiving special education or language support services. The school has no high school grades, so there is no graduation rate or college-going data to consider. No chronic absenteeism, discipline, or staffing data were available, which limits any assessment of school climate.
Kingston’s housing market reflects a modest and relatively affordable setting. Home values in the area are broadly in line with the state average. Rents are moderate, and the cost of buying versus renting leans slightly toward renting in a typical scenario. The town’s slow growth means that school enrollment is likely stable, without the pressures of rapid new housing development. Commuting access to Knoxville about forty miles away is straightforward via Interstate 40, which may matter for families who work outside the immediate area.
For a family considering Kingston Elementary, the school offers a standard elementary program in a stable, small-town setting. The academic strengths lie notably in science, while math and reading proficiency are areas where the school’s results fall closer to the state midpoint rather than at the top of the range. A parent who values a traditional public elementary experience in a town with lake access and a slow pace of life may find this a reasonable fit. Those who prioritize high proficiency rates across all subjects or who need specific information on support services for students below grade level may want to investigate further. The district did not report any recent budget, boundary, or programming changes that would alter the current picture.
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