1
How has Southern Elementary School changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
476
Elementary
DISTRICT 452 · STATE 421
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·FAYETTE COUNTY·NCES 210186000377
Southern Elementary School
340 Wilson Downing Rd, Lexington, KY 40517 · (859) 381-3589 · Fayette County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL476 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
12.1:1
39 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.3:1 · STATE 15.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
71%
338 students
DISTRICT 56% · STATE 63%
Community
5
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 23 | 5% |
| Kindergarten | 76 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 88 | 18% |
| Grade 2 | 67 | 14% |
| Grade 3 | 82 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 70 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 70 | 15% |
Student demographics
75%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 71% · 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
38.3%
KY avg 47.9%
Math
29.3%
KY avg 42.8%
What this means: On the KSA (K-PREP), Kentucky's statewide test, about 38 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 29 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
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
33.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.7%
based on KY schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.8pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 34% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 39% typical for Kentucky schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Kentucky's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Where Southern Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kentucky | In Fayette County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.9% | #505 of 669 | #24 of 37 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 29.3% | #549 of 668 | #26 of 36 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 38.3% | #514 of 674 | #23 of 37 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 476 | #278 of 744 | #23 of 42 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.1:1 | #47 of 674 | #14 of 38 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 75.3% | #6 of 674 | #1 of 38 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 71.0% | #262 of 721 | #13 of 39 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -13.8% | #195 of 437 | #10 of 24 |
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.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
476
+20 (+4%) vs 2020
-34% since 1990-91, when it was 722
Student : Teacher
12.1:1
was 10.9:1
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 | 476 | 39.4 | 12.1:1 | 71% (338) |
| 2023-24 | 490 | 45.2 | 10.8:1 | 62% (303) |
| 2022-23 | 526 | 40.6 | 13.0:1 | 61% (320) |
| 2020-21 | 456 | 42 | 10.9:1 | 67% (306) |
| 2017-18 | 552 | 37.7 | 14.6:1 | 73% (404) |
| 2015-16 | 625 | 44 | 14.2:1 | 70% (435) |
| 2010-11 | 698 | 43 | 16.2:1 | 64% (449) |
| 2000-01 | 655 | 28 | 23.4:1 | 36% (239) |
| 1990-91 | 722 | 37 | 19.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Southern Elementary School.
About Southern Elementary School
Southern Elementary School is a medium-sized elementary school located in Lexington, Kentucky. It covers pre-K through 5, with a total enrollment of 476 students.
Fayette County includes 73 schools. Together they enroll 42,138 students.
No single group makes up more than half of enrollment at Southern Elementary School. The largest is White students, at 33%. The remaining shares are 29% Black, 20% Hispanic, 12% multiracial, and 6% Asian. Census estimates put the White share of Fayette County's population at about 68%. Southern Elementary School's diversity index is 75%, against a US figure of 70%.
Its teaching staff equals 39.4 full-time positions, a ratio of 12.1:1. On average, elementary schools in Kentucky have 15.4:1, compared with 12.1:1 here. Around 71% of the school's students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. That rate is above the 50% average among public schools in Fayette County.
On BeatsExpectations, Southern Elementary School is 4.8 points below its prediction, a result in the middle 80% of Kentucky schools.
Within Fayette County, the median household income is $69,479, about 48% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 9%. In all, Fayette County has 81 public schools and roughly 42,142 students.
Southern Middle School is located about 0.1 miles from Southern Elementary School. The five-mile area around Southern Elementary School holds at least 8 other public schools. Among 9 nearby schools that report test results, Southern Elementary School ranks 7th on proficiency.
Federal records code the school's setting as City: Large.
Enrollment is up 4% from 2020-21, when Southern Elementary School had 456 students, to 2024-25, when it had 476. From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the ratio rose from 10.9:1 to 12.1:1.
Posts about science fairs, picture day, and bus routes are welcome on this page. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Fayette County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
323,725
Census ACS
Median income
$69,479
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
48%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
81
42,142 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Fayette County
- Lafayette High SchoolHigh · 2,370 students
- Bryan Station High SchoolHigh · 2,030 students
- Henry Clay High SchoolHigh · 1,939 students
- Paul Laurence Dunbar High SchoolHigh · 1,828 students
- Frederick Douglass High SchoolHigh · 1,770 students
- Tates Creek High SchoolHigh · 1,723 students
Other schools in Lexington
- Lafayette High SchoolHigh · 2,370 students
- Bryan Station High SchoolHigh · 2,030 students
- Henry Clay High SchoolHigh · 1,939 students
- Paul Laurence Dunbar High SchoolHigh · 1,828 students
- Frederick Douglass High SchoolHigh · 1,770 students
- Tates Creek High SchoolHigh · 1,723 students
Nearby schools
- Southern Middle School0.1 mi · 759
- Lansdowne Elementary School0.7 mi · 610
- Millcreek Elementary School1.5 mi · 529
- Veterans Park Elementary School1.6 mi · 702
- Tates Creek Elementary School1.7 mi · 626
- Julius Marks Elementary School1.8 mi · 444
Frequently asked questions
About Southern Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Southern Elementary School?
Southern Elementary School enrolls approximately 476 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Southern Elementary School serve?
Southern Elementary School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Southern Elementary School?
Approximately 12.1:1 students per teacher at Southern Elementary School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Southern Elementary School?
At Southern Elementary School, the student body is approximately 33% White, 20% Hispanic, 29% Black, 6% Asian, 12% Two or more.
What district is Southern Elementary School in?
Southern Elementary School is part of Fayette County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.