Southwind Elementary vs Memphis STEM Academy

Southwind Elementary and Memphis STEM Academy both earn strong overall ratings, but Memphis STEM Academy pulls ahead by 0.6 points — 9.5 versus 8.9 — and the state rank gap is striking: Memphis STEM Academy sits at #7 of 1,785 Tennessee schools while Southwind Elementary ranks #58. Both positions represent genuinely elite performance in a large state, but Memphis STEM Academy's placement in the top half-percent of Tennessee schools signals consistently exceptional outcomes across the metrics that drive composite scores.

On academics, Southwind Elementary holds the edge, scoring 9.2 to Memphis STEM Academy's 8.8 — a 0.4-point difference that reflects stronger raw proficiency in tested subjects. Growth flips that picture sharply: Memphis STEM Academy posts a 9.9 growth score against Southwind Elementary's already-impressive 9.5, meaning students at Memphis STEM Academy are advancing faster relative to comparable peers, even if Southwind Elementary students enter with higher baseline performance. The combined picture suggests Memphis STEM Academy excels at accelerating students across the ability range, while Southwind Elementary's population may enter with stronger prior preparation.

Memphis STEM Academy enrolls 243 students compared to Southwind Elementary's 661, and its student-teacher ratio is 13.5:1 versus Southwind Elementary's 16.1:1 — roughly one additional adult for every five students. That smaller footprint supports more individualized attention at Memphis STEM Academy. Southwind Elementary, as a larger traditional public school, serves a broader neighborhood population with the resources and infrastructure that come with size: more sections, broader extracurricular capacity, and established community ties across a larger geographic catchment.

Both schools serve PK through grade 5, so families lose no grade-level access choosing either option. The structural distinction matters here: Southwind Elementary is a regular district public school with guaranteed neighborhood enrollment, while Memphis STEM Academy is a charter with its own application and enrollment process. Families 17.4 miles across Memphis weighing both schools are effectively choosing between a high-performing neighborhood school with deeper academic scores and a specialized charter where growth trajectories and a low student-teacher ratio rank among the very best in Tennessee.