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School district · Tennessee · LEAID 4703510

Rhea County

Rhea County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (4,091 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Rhea County come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$56,786
Est. avg teacher salary

Near benchmark

$12,491
Per-pupil spending
4,091
Students enrolled
47th
Pct. in TN
$56,786

Rhea County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (4,091 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $56,786, below the national average of $70,245, serving 4,091 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Smaller enrollment scale: Rhea County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (4,091 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
  • 47th percentile for Tennessee
  • 30th percentile nationally
  • 36% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • Tennessee ranks #38 of 49 on the salary estimate and #13 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • Rhea County ranks #74 of 139 Tennessee districts by estimated teacher salary and #92 of 139 by per-pupil spending. Achievement School District pay #1 at $82,057 is not Franklin SSD spending #1 at $24,604 per pupil
  • +22.5% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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Instructional payroll mix vs Tennessee median

Among 141 Tennessee districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Rhea County's instructional payroll puts 86.8% into regular program , 2.7 points above the state median of 84.1%. Regular-program teachers claim more of the instructional salary pool here than at the median Tennessee district.

Program Rhea County TN median Gap
Regular program 86.8% 84.1% +2.7 pp
Special education 8.9% 10.0% -1.1 pp
Vocational programs 4.3% 5.0% -0.7 pp

Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 141 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 4703510 · FY2023.

LEAID 4703510 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

Rhea County F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-INLINE Near state avg RANK-ST-LOW P47 in state RANK-NAT-LOW P30 national PPE-LOW $12K/pupil ENR-MID 4,091 students INSTR-MID 36% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Cannon FY-2023-MID FY2023 book

FY2023: $56,786 estimated average teacher salary · P47 in Tennessee · P30 nationally · 36% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Hawkins ($433est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for Rhea County

Salary neighbourhood · Rhea County

Rhea County sits mid-pack among in-state peers; the chart brackets it between the top and bottom pay poles (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).

est. salary
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey As of FY2023
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Rhea County

Rhea County's estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$56,786 30th percentile higher than 30% of 10,684 US districts

Show national distribution $30,000–$40,000: 155 US districts (1%). Below this entry. $40,000–$50,000: 1,360 US districts (13%). Below this entry. $50,000–$60,000: 2,382 US districts (22%). This entry sits in this band. $60,000–$70,000: 2,402 US districts (22%). Above this entry. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). Above this entry. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). Above this entry. $90,000–$100,000: 662 US districts (6%). Above this entry. $100,000–$110,000: 371 US districts (3%). Above this entry. $110,000–$120,000: 249 US districts (2%). Above this entry. $120,000–$130,000: 156 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $130,000–$140,000: 112 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $140,000–$150,000: 57 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $150,000–$160,000: 25 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $160,000–$170,000: 13 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $170,000–$180,000: 10 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $180,000–$190,000: 0 US districts (0%). Above this entry. Rhea County $30,000 $190,000 every reliable-salary US district, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023

Rhea County in Tennessee's lower-third pay band

Same 139 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows Rhea County ranks #74 of 139 Tennessee districts by estimated teacher salary and #92 of 139 by per-pupil spending. Achievement School District pay #1 at $82,057 is not Franklin SSD spending #1 at $24,604 per pupil

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

The same districts by per-pupil spending

Rhea County is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Franklin SSD leads spending at $24,604 per pupil; Achievement School District leads pay.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

What stands out about Rhea County

  • Estimated teacher pay here rose +22.5% between FY2019 and FY2023, outpacing Tennessee's statewide +12.8% by 9.7 points, a growth rate faster than 91% of the 141 Tennessee districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.

This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests

Nominal district estimate
$56,786.355

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

Tennessee price level
92.1 / 100

BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.

National-price equivalent
$61,661

+9% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in Tennessee run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.

Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how Tennessee compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.

How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Rhea County

What the Numbers Say About Rhea County

Rhea County is a small-to-mid-sized school district in Tennessee, serving 4,091 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $12,491. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $56,786, placing the district in the lower-spending tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 4703510 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Tennessee statewide average of $57,941, teacher pay in Rhea County runs slightly below the state benchmark, a 2.0% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (19.2% differential). Among enrolling districts in Tennessee, it pays more than 47% of them. Tennessee itself ranks #38 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, Rhea County reports $51.1M in total expenditure against $51.7M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 36% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $13.7M, special-education teacher pay is $1.4M.

How does Rhea County compare?

Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Tennessee average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.

Rhea County $56,786
Memphis-Shelby County Schools $58,671
Tennessee avg $57,941
National avg $70,245

Rhea County pays -3.2% less than Memphis-Shelby County Schools · per-pupil $12,491 vs $16,050

Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.

Data-derived comparison paths

Find comparable Tennessee districts

On pay, Rhea County sits closest to Cannon County; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is McNairy County. These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.

Closest on estimated pay
  1. Cannon County
  2. Chester County
  3. Perry County
  4. Wayne County
  5. Henderson County
  6. DeKalb County
  7. Hawkins County
  8. Stewart County
  9. Tipton County
  10. Lauderdale County
  11. Maury County
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. McNairy County
  2. Fentress County
  3. Bedford County
  4. Grainger County
  5. Decatur County
  6. Marion County
  7. Milan
  8. Greene County
  9. Carter County
  10. Washington County
  11. Putnam County

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near Rhea County's smaller enrollment

Two out-of-state peer sets for Rhea County: closest on enrollment (4,091 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($56,786 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.

Similar enrollment

Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).

Similar estimated salary

Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.

Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.

Revenue & Expenditure

$51.7M
Total Revenue
$51.1M
Total Expenditure
$18.4M
Instruction Salaries
36% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$13.7M
Regular Program
$1.4M
Special Education
$0.7M
Vocational

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 3 programs in Rhea County: the regular program, special education and vocational programs. It reports no separate figure for other programs. Together they are 86% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 14% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.

Tennessee Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized Tennessee districts belongs to Achievement School District at $82,057. Rhea County places 72 of 137 comparably sized districts, squarely in the middle band the state average actually represents. Indiana and Idaho are the states closest to Tennessee on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.

View all Tennessee districts →

Other Tennessee Districts

Smaller-district sample from 138 Tennessee peers; bar length shows pay magnitude within this enrollment band.

Lenoir City
$61,073
2,568 students
Scott County
$54,178
2,524 students
Maryville
$71,490
5,671 students
Claiborne County
$58,212
4,070 students
Henderson County
$56,529
4,054 students
Bristol
$67,292
4,029 students

This is a sample of 6 from 138 Tennessee districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about Rhea County
What is the average teacher salary in Rhea County?

The average teacher salary in Rhea County is $56,786 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).

How does Rhea County teacher pay compare to the Tennessee average?

Rhea County pays 2.0% less than the Tennessee state average of $57,941. The district's average is $56,786.

How does Rhea County teacher pay compare to the national average?

Rhea County pays 19.2% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $56,786.

What is the per-pupil spending in Rhea County?

Rhea County spends approximately $12,491 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of Rhea County's budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 36% of Rhea County's total expenditure of $51.1M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for Rhea County
Disclaimer & data sources

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher

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Editorial standards & source notes

According to the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) F-33 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, PlainTeacher's figures are computed directly, no number is typed in by an editor. Rhea County's salary and finance figures are computed directly from its FY2023 F-33 submission, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of FY2023.