Cherokee Elementary vs Wells Station Elementary

Wells Station Elementary holds a substantial advantage in overall rating, scoring 9.3/10 against Cherokee Elementary's 7.7/10 — a 1.6-point gap that translates directly into state rankings. Wells Station Elementary sits at #21 of 1785 elementary schools in Tennessee, placing it in the top 2% statewide. Cherokee Elementary ranks #398 of 1785, which is solidly above average but trails Wells Station by 377 positions. For Memphis families choosing between two schools just 6.1 miles apart, that state rank gap represents a meaningful difference in demonstrated school performance.

Academically, Wells Station Elementary scores 8.3/10 versus Cherokee Elementary's 7.0/10 — a 1.3-point delta that reflects stronger proficiency outcomes at Wells Station. On growth, the two schools are nearly identical: Cherokee Elementary posts 9.7/10 and Wells Station Elementary 9.8/10, meaning both schools are doing an exceptional job accelerating student progress relative to peers. Students who enter either school behind grade level can expect strong catch-up trajectories. The academic gap, then, is less about how fast students grow and more about the baseline proficiency level Wells Station has achieved and sustains.

The two schools differ noticeably in scale and staffing density. Cherokee Elementary enrolls 368 students against Wells Station Elementary's 633 — 72% more students at Wells Station. Despite serving a larger population, Wells Station carries a student-teacher ratio of 12.7:1, tighter than Cherokee Elementary's 15.3:1. That means Wells Station students get more individual adult attention on average, even as the school operates at nearly double the enrollment. Both schools serve grades PK through 05, so the grade-span comparison is apples to apples.

No program-level data was provided to distinguish extracurricular offerings or specific instructional models between the two schools. What the numbers show is a consistent pattern: Wells Station Elementary leads on absolute academic outcomes and staffing efficiency while Cherokee Elementary matches it on growth, making both schools legitimate choices depending on what a family prioritizes most.