Carter-Lawrence Elementary School, 1118 12th Ave. S.: pre-K to 5, 209 students in 2024-25, state letter grade C.

Last checked Oct. 19, 2026. Sources: Carter-Lawrence Elementary, Metro Nashville Public Schools’ school directory, 2026-27 pathways chart (PDF), district calendar, school start times and zone finder, the Tennessee Department of Education’s State Report Card, 2024-25 letter grade and school profile files and spring 2026 test file and the federal NCES school directory.

Carter-Lawrence Elementary School is a Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. MNPS’s 2026-27 pathways chart lists it with the Hillsboro cluster in the district’s Southwest quadrant. MNPS lists it among its magnet schools as Carter-Lawrence Engineering Magnet Elementary.

  • Address: 1118 12th Ave. S., Nashville, TN 37203
  • Main office: 615-291-7333
  • Grades: pre-K to 5
  • School hours: 8:10 a.m. to 3:10 p.m., according to the district’s 2026-27 start times
  • Website: carterlawrence.mnps.org

Who to call

  • Front office: 615-291-7333
  • Enrolling a new student: the school, or one of MNPS’s eight enrollment centers, open 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays; MNPS Family Information Center 615-259-4636
  • Applying: the MNPS School Options process
  • Getting there: MNPS says that in most cases it does not provide school buses to out-of-zone students at optional schools; high school students, and middle school students at MNPS optional schools, ride WeGo buses free through the StrIDe program (Transportation, 615-259-4636)

Principal

Principal Sherleta Sanders, according to the school’s website.

Enrollment

The federal NCES directory counted 199 students in the 2023-24 school year, with 19 full-time-equivalent teachers, about 10 students per teacher. The Tennessee Department of Education’s 2024-25 school profile file has a newer count of 209 students, including 18 in pre-K.

State report card

Tennessee grades every public school A to F. The department says School Letter Grades give “a snapshot of how each school in the state is performing, including student achievement and academic growth measures for all schools, as well as a measure of college and career readiness just for high schools.”

From the state’s 2024-25 letter grade file:

Measure Carter-Lawrence Elementary
Overall letter grade, 2024-25 C (score 2.5 of 5)
Achievement grade D
Academic growth grade C
Growth of the lowest-scoring 25% of students C
Overall success rate on state tests, 2024-25 22.1%

The state’s spring 2026 test file has the share of Carter-Lawrence Elementary students in tested grades who met or exceeded expectations on TCAP: 19.4% in English language arts, 13.6% in math and 16.7% in science. The 2025-26 letter grades have not been published yet.

The State Report Card page for Carter-Lawrence Elementary holds the full detail: results by grade and subject, chronic absenteeism and results for each group of students.

Admission and pathway

Carter-Lawrence Elementary has no attendance zone. Students apply through the district’s School Options process, which MNPS says uses a computerized random selection for applications received by the deadline; for 2026-27, applications opened Jan. 20, 2026, and were due Feb. 13. New MNPS families may apply year-round to optional schools with open seats.

The district’s 2026-27 pathways chart (PDF) lists Carter-Lawrence Elementary with the Hillsboro cluster, whose zoned high school is Hillsboro High.

Calendar and school hours

The MNPS 2026-27 district calendar has these dates next:

  • Thursday, Oct. 22: report cards issued
  • Tuesday, Nov. 3: parent conference day, no school for students
  • Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day, district closed
  • Nov. 23-27: Thanksgiving break (district closed Nov. 26-27)
  • Friday, Dec. 18: half day; the second quarter ends
  • Dec. 21 to Jan. 1: winter break
  • March 22-26, 2027: spring break and the spring holiday
  • Tuesday, May 25, 2027: last day for students, a half day

The school day runs 8:10 a.m. to 3:10 p.m., according to the district’s 2026-27 school start times, which the Board of Education approved as part of a districtwide adjustment.

More

Frequently asked questions

What grades does Carter-Lawrence Elementary serve?

Pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The school is at 1118 12th Ave. S. in Nashville; the main office number is 615-291-7333.

What is Carter-Lawrence Elementary’s state report card grade?

Carter-Lawrence Elementary received a C overall in Tennessee’s 2024-25 School Letter Grades, according to the Tennessee Department of Education.

What time does Carter-Lawrence Elementary start?

School runs from 8:10 a.m. to 3:10 p.m., according to the district’s 2026-27 school start times.