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Honest take: what's the hardest part about being a student at South High?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,257
High
DISTRICT 322 · STATE 371
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MINNEAPOLIS PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 272124001035
South High
3131 19TH AVE S, MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55407 · (612) 668-4300 · Hennepin County
GRADES 09–12HIGH11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL1,257 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 31% of Minnesota public high schools
- C-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats 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 Minnesota public high schools
Student : Teacher
12.9:1
98 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.1:1 · STATE 16.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
65%
818 students
DISTRICT 63% · STATE 48%
Community
5
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 300 | 24% |
| Grade 10 | 342 | 27% |
| Grade 11 | 300 | 24% |
| Grade 12 | 315 | 25% |
Student demographics
74%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 74% · STATE 60% · 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
MCA 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds StandardsEnglish Language Arts
34.5%
MN avg 49.7%
Math
20.0%
MN avg 45.3%
What this means: On the MCA, Minnesota's statewide test, about 34 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 20 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Minnesota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 45.
Source: MCA. 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
25.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
30.1%
based on MN schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.2pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 26% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 30% typical for Minnesota 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 Minnesota'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 →
Schools most like South High
South High's state test result (25.8% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South High this school | 1,257 | 65.1% | 25.8% |
| Kennedy High School BLOOMINGTON | 1,578 | 61.3% | 24.9% |
| ROBBINSDALE COOPER SENIOR HIGH NEW HOPE | 1,396 | 70.4% | 25.3% |
| FARIBAULT SENIOR HIGH FARIBAULT | 956 | 57.8% | 24.3% |
| Edison High MINNEAPOLIS | 865 | 70.3% | 29.9% |
| Columbia Heights Senior High COLUMBIA HEIGHTS | 1,141 | 72.2% | 23.5% |
Matched among Minnesota high 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 South High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Minnesota | In Hennepin County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 25.8% | #338 of 397 | #31 of 45 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 20.0% | #310 of 401 | #28 of 47 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 34.5% | #331 of 397 | #34 of 45 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,257 | #75 of 764 | #17 of 100 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.9:1 | #40 of 332 | #6 of 38 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 73.9% | #14 of 338 | #3 of 38 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 65.1% | #62 of 444 | #19 of 51 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -30.2% | #12 of 146 | #4 of 16 |
Ranked against other public high 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
1,257
-387 (-24%) vs 2020
-31% since 1990-91, when it was 1,811
Student : Teacher
12.9:1
was 20.3:1
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 | 1,257 | 97.8 | 12.9:1 | 65% (818) |
| 2023-24 | 1,261 | 91 | 13.8:1 | 63% (797) |
| 2022-23 | 1,466 | 73 | 20.1:1 | 66% (970) |
| 2020-21 | 1,644 | 81 | 20.3:1 | 52% (859) |
| 2017-18 | 1,801 | 112 | 16.1:1 | 55% (998) |
| 2015-16 | 1,847 | 111 | 16.6:1 | 56% (1,041) |
| 2010-11 | 1,957 | 92 | 21.3:1 | 47% (925) |
| 2000-01 | 1,991 | 101 | 19.7:1 | 35% (705) |
| 1990-91 | 1,811 | 75 | 24.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South High.
Since 2017-18: students down 30% (1,801 to 1,257); teachers down 13% (112 to 97.8).
About South High
South High is a large high school in MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, (ZIP code 55407). The latest federal count shows 1,257 students in grades 9 through 12. Against the 371-student average for high schools in Minnesota, enrollment here is 239% higher.
South High falls under Minneapolis Public School District, which has 86 schools enrolling 29,928 students.
At South High, the largest share of students is Hispanic, at 35%. The next largest groups are 31% Black, 18% White, 10% Native American, and 5% multiracial. The school's Hispanic share is 27 points above the 8% share among Hennepin County residents. Pick two students at random and there is a 74% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
Dividing enrollment by its 97.8 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 12.9:1. That is 3.5 students per teacher below the 16.3:1 average for high schools in Minnesota. South High reports 65% of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals. Public schools in Hennepin County average 43%.
Measured against Minnesota public high schools, South High receives a C. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Given its share of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, South High would be expected to post about 30.1%. Its actual average proficiency rate on state tests is 25.8%.
Hennepin County has these Census figures: the median household income is $97,653, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 54%, and about 5% of people live in poverty. In all, Hennepin County has 496 public schools and roughly 177,509 students.
The closest other public school is Transition Plus Services, about 0.1 miles away. South High has at least 8 other public schools within five miles. Ranking the closest schools with test data puts South High at 3rd of 7.
Its NCES locale code is City: Large: the school is inside a principal city with a population of 250,000 or more.
Enrollment declined 24% from its 2020-21 level of 1,644. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 20.3:1 in 2020-21 to 12.9:1 in 2024-25.
Topics for discussion here include school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Hennepin County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
1,269,496
Census ACS
Median income
$97,653
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
54%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
496
177,509 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Minneapolis Public School District
- Washburn HighHigh · 1,521 students
- Southwest HighHigh · 1,195 students
- Roosevelt HighHigh · 1,148 students
- Andersen MiddleMiddle · 1,052 students
- Justice Page MiddleMiddle · 1,020 students
- Edison HighHigh · 865 students
Other schools in MINNEAPOLIS
- Washburn HighHigh · 1,521 students
- Southwest HighHigh · 1,195 students
- Roosevelt HighHigh · 1,148 students
- Andersen MiddleMiddle · 1,052 students
- Justice Page MiddleMiddle · 1,020 students
- Edison HighHigh · 865 students
Other South High schools
13 other US public schools in 10 states are named South High. South High is the 7th largest of the 14.
- SOUTH HIGH SCHOOLOMAHA, NE · 2,412 students
- South HighBakersfield, CA · 2,107 students
- South High SchoolDENVER, CO · 1,950 students
- South HighTorrance, CA · 1,734 students
- South HighWichita, KS · 1,662 students
Nearby schools
- Transition Plus Services0.1 mi · 267
- MTS HIGH SCHOOL0.5 mi · 158
- Lirio Montessori0.6 mi · 3
- Folwell Elementary0.6 mi · 450
- AURORA MIDDLE SCHOOL0.6 mi · 180
- AURORA CHARTER SCHOOL0.6 mi · 239
Frequently asked questions
About South HighWhat is the total enrollment at South High?
South High enrolls approximately 1,257 students in grades 09-12.
What grades does South High serve?
South High serves grades 09-12.
How many teachers does South High have?
South High employs 98 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 12.9:1.
What is the student diversity at South High?
Student demographics at South High are roughly 18% White, 35% Hispanic, 31% Black, 2% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Is South High public or private?
South High is a public K-12 school, overseen by Minneapolis Public School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.