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Alumni: what's one memory from Semple Elementary that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
592
Elementary
DISTRICT 455 · STATE 421
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·JEFFERSON COUNTY·NCES 210299000776
Semple Elementary
724 Denmark Street, Louisville, KY 40215 · (502) 485-8324 · Jefferson County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL592 STUDENTS
F
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 3% of Kentucky public elementary schools
- FTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- FBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Kentucky public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
14.4:1
41 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.9:1 · STATE 15.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
77%
454 students
DISTRICT 65% · STATE 63%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 102 | 17% |
| Grade 1 | 103 | 17% |
| Grade 2 | 108 | 18% |
| Grade 3 | 98 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 89 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 92 | 16% |
This year's kindergarten class (102) is 11% larger than its 5th grade class (92).
Student demographics
69%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 72% · STATE 47% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
KSA (K-PREP) 2024-25 . % Proficient/DistinguishedEnglish Language Arts
20.7%
KY avg 47.9%
Math
16.0%
KY avg 42.8%
What this means: On the KSA (K-PREP), Kentucky's statewide test, about 21 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 16 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Kentucky schools, those numbers are about 48 and 43.
Source: KSA (K-PREP). All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of KY schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
18.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
36.6%
based on KY schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-17.9pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 19% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 37% typical for Kentucky schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Semple Elementary
Semple Elementary's state test result (18.7% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semple Elementary this school | 592 | 76.7% | 18.7% |
| Trunnell Elementary Louisville | 528 | 75.9% | 12.5% |
| Shacklette Elementary Louisville | 429 | 75.5% | 13.5% |
| Millcreek Elementary School Lexington | 529 | 70.5% | 22.9% |
| Price Elementary Louisville | 470 | 75.5% | 20.6% |
| Tates Creek Elementary School Lexington | 626 | 78.1% | 36.7% |
Matched among Kentucky elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Semple Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kentucky | In Jefferson County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 18.7% | #647 of 669 | #68 of 86 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 16.0% | #647 of 668 | #69 of 84 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 20.7% | #650 of 674 | #67 of 89 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 592 | #131 of 744 | #22 of 99 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.4:1 | #285 of 674 | #30 of 90 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 69.2% | #66 of 674 | #33 of 90 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 76.7% | #162 of 721 | #32 of 93 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -0.8% | #425 of 437 | #42 of 46 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
592
+61 (+11%) vs 2020
+26% since 1990-91, when it was 468
Student : Teacher
14.4:1
was 12.9:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 592 | 41 | 14.4:1 | 77% (454) |
| 2023-24 | 562 | 39.2 | 14.3:1 | 78% (436) |
| 2022-23 | 574 | 35.4 | 16.2:1 | 79% (456) |
| 2020-21 | 531 | 41 | 12.9:1 | 79% (421) |
| 2017-18 | 597 | 39.7 | 15.1:1 | 89% (533) |
| 2015-16 | 584 | 36 | 16.2:1 | 91% (531) |
| 2010-11 | 549 | 36 | 15.3:1 | 99% (546) |
| 2000-01 | 654 | N/A | N/A | 72% (474) |
| 1990-91 | 468 | 24 | 19.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Semple Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 1% (597 to 592); teachers up 3% (39.7 to 41).
About Semple Elementary
As a medium-sized elementary school, Semple Elementary serves students in Louisville, Kentucky. Students in kindergarten through 5 attend, and enrollment is 592 students. The typical figure for elementary schools in Kentucky is about 421 students.
Semple Elementary reports to Jefferson County, which has 167 schools and 95,124 students.
By race and ethnicity, the largest group at Semple Elementary is Black (43%). Other groups make up 29% Hispanic, 17% White, and 9% multiracial. Jefferson County as a whole is about 21% Black, so the school's share is higher. Semple Elementary has a diversity index of 69%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
Semple Elementary operates with 41 full-time-equivalent teachers, a ratio of about 14.4:1. For comparison, elementary schools in Kentucky average 15.4:1. About 77% of students at the school meet free or reduced-price lunch income limits. The rate at public schools in Jefferson County averages 61%, lower than here.
Measured against Kentucky public elementary schools, Semple Elementary receives an F. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
On BeatsExpectations, which compares test results with what a school's student poverty level would predict, Semple Elementary ranks in the bottom 10% in Kentucky. Its average proficiency rate on state tests is 18.7%, against a prediction of 36.6%.
Jefferson County has about 783,022 residents, and median household income is about $69,866, 37% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 11% of people live in poverty. The public schools of Jefferson County number 175 and enroll about 95,579.
The closest public school to Semple Elementary is Frederick Law Olmsted Academy North, about 0.6 miles away. Within five miles of Semple Elementary, there are at least 8 other public schools. Of 8 schools in the immediate area with test results, Semple Elementary ranks 3rd on average proficiency.
NCES lists the school's locale as City: Large. That means it sits inside a principal city with a population of 250,000 or more.
Semple Elementary saw enrollment rise 11% between 2020-21 and 2024-25. By 2024-25, the school had 14.4 students per teacher, compared with 12.9 in 2020-21.
Community posts for Semple Elementary can cover science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Jefferson County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
783,022
Census ACS
Median income
$69,866
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
37%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
175
95,579 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Jefferson County
- Ballard HighHigh · 2,148 students
- duPont Manual HighHigh · 1,899 students
- Marion C. Moore SchoolHigh · 1,892 students
- Eastern HighHigh · 1,790 students
- Pleasure Ridge Park HighHigh · 1,777 students
- Louisville Male HighHigh · 1,763 students
Other schools in Louisville
- Ballard HighHigh · 2,148 students
- duPont Manual HighHigh · 1,899 students
- Marion C. Moore SchoolHigh · 1,892 students
- Pleasure Ridge Park HighHigh · 1,777 students
- Louisville Male HighHigh · 1,763 students
- Southern HighHigh · 1,725 students
Nearby schools
- Frederick Law Olmsted Academy North0.6 mi · 470
- Frayser Elementary1.0 mi · 419
- Churchill Park School1.3 mi · 74
- Hazelwood Elementary1.3 mi · 527
- Jacob Elementary1.3 mi · 519
- Rutherford Elementary1.6 mi · 476
Frequently asked questions
About Semple ElementaryHow many students attend Semple Elementary?
Semple Elementary enrolls approximately 592 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does Semple Elementary serve?
Semple Elementary serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Semple Elementary?
Approximately 14.4:1 students per teacher at Semple Elementary.
How diverse is Semple Elementary?
Semple Elementary reports a student body of 17% White, 29% Hispanic, 43% Black, 2% Asian, 9% Two or more.
Is Semple Elementary public or private?
Semple Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Jefferson County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.