Dawson Orman Education Center

As a tiny elementary school in Louisville, Kentucky, Dawson Orman Education Center serves 149 students from grade pre-K, run under Jefferson County. By comparison, Kentucky's public schools average about 421 students each, so Dawson Orman Education Center sits 65% leaner than that benchmark.

Jefferson County comprises 167 schools with combined enrollment of 95,124 students; Dawson Orman Education Center is among them.

Looking at the student body, Dawson Orman Education Center lists that Black students make up the majority at 72%; the rest comes out to 11% White, 6% Hispanic, 6% multiracial, 3% Asian. By comparison, Jefferson County as a whole is about 21% Black, so the school skews meaningfully more Black than its surroundings.

On the resource side, Dawson Orman Education Center records 11 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 13.6:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 15.4:1 average. An estimated 82% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. By comparison, Jefferson County runs at roughly 61%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully above the surrounding baseline.

Across the wider county, Jefferson County reports that median household earnings sit near $69,866, about 37% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 11%. Across Jefferson County's 175 public schools (combined enrollment of about 95,579 students), Dawson Orman Education Center is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is Pathfinder School of Innovation, roughly 0.0 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools.

The school occupies an urban site.

Over the past 7-year window. Dawson Orman Education Center's enrollment has decreased 40% since 2018, when it stood at 248 (now 149). The White share of enrollment ticked down from 17% to 11% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 19.1:1 in 2018 to 13.6:1 today.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.