The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Volunteer State have a larger percent of their population that never graduated from high school.
While the emphasis on going to college might be overblown, the fact is that not graduating from high school puts you at a significant disadvantage on average. Educational attainment might not be the best way to measure one person’s intelligence, but it does shine a light on the state.
We will use Saturday Night Science to determine what places in Tennessee have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.
A recent study we published found that Tennessee is actually the 38th smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 98.
But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in Tennessee are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.
After crunching the numbers, we ranked the ten dumbest cities in the Volunteer State.
The 10 Most Boring Places In Tennessee
Don’t freak out.
Some places are just smarter than others, but that says nothing about the character of the people living there. It’s another data point a real estate agent would never tell you.
For this ranking, we only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 92 cities in Tennessee to rank. You can take a look at the data below.
For more Tennessee reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Tennessee
- Cheapest Places To Live In Tennessee
- Safest Places To Live In Tennessee
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Dumbest Places In Tennessee For 2023
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 23.0%
% Highly Educated: 5.0%
More on Lafayette: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 23.0%
% Highly Educated: 11.0%
More on Madisonville: | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 22.0%
% Highly Educated: 6.0%
More on La Follette: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 23.0%
% Highly Educated: 9.0%
More on Dunlap: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 27.0%
% Highly Educated: 13.0%
More on Pigeon Forge: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 21.0%
% Highly Educated: 11.0%
More on Ripley: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 18.0%
% Highly Educated: 9.0%
More on Brownsville: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 21.0%
% Highly Educated: 13.0%
More on Shelbyville: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 16.0%
% Highly Educated: 11.0%
More on Newport: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 19.0%
% Highly Educated: 15.0%
More on Mcminnville: Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Volunteer State
We realize that formal education is only part of it when it comes to being intelligent, but on the other hand, knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.
So, we narrowed down our criteria to focus on a city’s educational opportunities and what percentage of the population takes advantage of those opportunities.
In short, we came up with these criteria to determine the dumbest cities in Tennessee:
- % of the city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
- % of city’s population with a college degree (Age 25+)
We got the data from the U.S. Census 2017-2021 American Community Survey.
Then, our algorithm generates a rank for each place in these categories. After crunching all the numbers, a ranking of the cities in Tennessee from dumbest to brightest.
For this ranking, we used every Tennessee city with at least 5,000 residents. We updated this article for 2023, and it’s our tenth time ranking the dumbest cities in Tennessee.
There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep
If you’re measuring the locations in Tennessee where there are a high number of dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate ranking.
If you’re also curious enough, here are the smartest places in Tennessee, according to science:
- Brentwood
- Germantown
- Signal Mountain
For more Tennessee reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Tennessee
- Cheapest Places To Live In Tennessee
- Most Dangerous Cities In Tennessee
- Richest Cities In Tennessee
- Safest Places In Tennessee
- Worst Places To Live In Tennessee
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Tennessee
I hate to say it but if you look at the educators that are being hired, you’ll see a loss of people who are related being hired on. If you have a relative that is already working for the school system, you are more likely to be hired than someone who doesn’t. They appear to have no interest in hiring on a person’s credentials or whether they come highly recommended by someone they worked for while student teaching. It is who you know that gets you hired. Plain and simple.
The problem is with the schools it self all they only care if they are at school so they get money for every child there . They don’t teach any more they pass the kids because of the no child left be hide . If a child can’t do the work when the teacher puts it on the board they are just out of luck . Because they are told to figure it out their self . I have had people with kids in different schools tell me the same thing . Add this new math last time I checked 2+2 =4 not 6
You might want to proofread your response before attempting to make a point on the topic of education.
Pam S.:the problem is not with the educators or the schools.The problem is with: a) parents not being involved in their own children’s lives, and b) a bunch of politicians making educational policy when they have no expertise in education.
As a teacher in the Tennesee public school system, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that we care VERY much about our students’ education and wish we had control over what we taught and how the students were assessed. Get your butt to a school board meeting and help make changes. God knows they don’t listen to teachers.
Also, Joanna Vazquez: your statement simply isn’t true. Many teachers, including myself, have been hired from out of state because of our credentials, not because we know someone or are related to someone in the district. Sounds like you may have a personal issue.
would like to see the other side of the list using the same criterion