Jackson Elementary vs Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus

Jackson Elementary and Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus sit only 9.6 miles apart in Memphis, yet their profiles diverge in ways that matter for families weighing options. Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus ranks #26 of 1,785 schools in Tennessee, placing it six spots above Jackson Elementary at #32 — a meaningful gap near the top of the state distribution despite an overall rating difference of just 0.1 points (9.2 vs. 9.1 out of 10).

The academic and growth scores pull in opposite directions. Jackson Elementary holds a 1.0-point academic edge, scoring 8.4/10 versus Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus at 7.4/10 — suggesting stronger absolute proficiency on tested subjects. Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus counters with a near-perfect growth score of 10.0/10 against Jackson Elementary's already strong 9.5/10, meaning Compass students are advancing at an exceptional rate relative to their starting points. Families prioritizing current achievement levels will read those numbers differently than families who weight year-over-year student progress.

Structurally, the two schools are close in size but not identical. Jackson Elementary enrolls 303 students across PreK through 5th grade; Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus runs smaller at 254 students and extends through 8th grade. The student-teacher ratio at Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus is 12.7:1 versus Jackson Elementary's 13.8:1 — roughly one additional student per classroom at Jackson. Jackson Elementary operates as a regular public school, while Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus is a charter, which typically carries distinct enrollment and application processes.

The grade-span difference is the sharpest structural distinction. Jackson Elementary covers PK–05, making it a natural feeder to a separate middle school. Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus runs KG–08, keeping students in a single building through middle school and eliminating one school transition. Families with younger children who value continuity across the elementary-to-middle transition will find that feature relevant; those who want PreK access will only find it at Jackson Elementary.