Community Lab School

Located at 1200 Forest Street, in Charlottesville, Virginia, Community Lab School is a rural-scale high school that hosts 177 students (grades 6 through 12), part of Albemarle County Public Schools. By comparison, Virginia's public schools average about 1,213 students each, so Community Lab School sits 85% below that benchmark.

Albemarle County Public Schools comprises 24 schools with combined enrollment of 14,149 students; Community Lab School is among them.

In terms of who attends, Community Lab School records that 72% of the student body identifies as White. Other groups include 10% Hispanic, 8% multiracial, 7% Black, 3% Asian.

On the income-and-resources front, On paper, Community Lab School has 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 9.7:1. The state averages around 13.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. An estimated 5% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is lower than Charlottesville city's rate of about 72%.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Community Lab School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 86.7%; this one delivers 88.0%.

In the broader community, the surrounding county (Charlottesville city) records that the typical household earns roughly $74,824 per year, 63% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. In all, Charlottesville city runs 15 public schools (combined enrollment of about 5,150 students), of which Community Lab School is one.

Nearest neighbor: Jackson P. Burley Middle, around 0.2 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Community Lab School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Community Lab School at 1st of 9; the average score across the group is 65.3%.

Geographically, the school is in a downtown area. Community Lab School is a charter school, which puts it inside the public-school system but outside the standard district-managed model.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Community Lab School has edged up 77%, going from 100 students in 2018 to 177 in 2025. The White share of enrollment edged down from 78% to 72% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio loosened from 7.2:1 in 2018 to 9.7:1 today.

On allk12, the feed for Community Lab School typically covers pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.