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How has SOUTH LAKES HIGH changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
2,434
High
DISTRICT 2,257 · STATE 1,213
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 510126000566
South Lakes High
11400 South Lakes Dr, Reston, VA 20191 · (703) 715-4500 · Fairfax County
GRADES 09–12HIGH13-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL2,434 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 45% of Virginia public high schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Virginia public high schools
Student : Teacher
11.7:1
208 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.1:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
34%
834 students
DISTRICT 39% · STATE 66%
Community
1
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 | 602 | 25% |
| Grade 10 | 594 | 24% |
| Grade 11 | 591 | 24% |
| Grade 12 | 647 | 27% |
Student demographics
72%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 74% · STATE 71% · 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
SOL 2024-25 . % PassingEnglish Language Arts
88.0%
VA avg 74.2% . -3.0pp since 2022
Math
79.0%
VA avg 72.7% . -5.0pp since 2022
What this means: On the SOL, Virginia's statewide test, about 88 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 79 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Virginia schools, those numbers are about 74 and 73. Reading and writing scores are down about 3 points since 2022, while math scores are down about 5 points.
SOL results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 88.0% | 79.0% |
| 2023-24 | 85.0% | 81.0% |
| 2022-23 | 91.0% | 84.0% |
% Passing, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SOL. 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
76.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
78.8%
based on VA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-2.1pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 77% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 79% typical for Virginia 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 Virginia'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 Lakes High
South Lakes High's state test result (76.6% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Lakes High this school | 2,434 | 34.3% | 76.6% |
| Albemarle High Charlottesville | 1,964 | 31.0% | 70.7% |
| Charles J. Colgan Sr. High Manassas | 2,956 | 28.7% | 79.6% |
| Potomac Falls High Potomac Falls | 1,662 | 37.9% | 70.0% |
| Washington-Liberty High Arlington | 3,044 | 25.2% | 75.6% |
| Edison High Alexandria | 2,294 | 38.6% | 70.7% |
Matched among Virginia 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 Lakes High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Virginia | In Fairfax County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 76.6% | #134 of 311 | #13 of 24 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 79.0% | #193 of 316 ▼ 15 | #16 of 24 ▼ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 88.0% | #118 of 316 ▲ 31 | #13 of 24 ▲ 3 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 2,434 | #21 of 325 | #10 of 27 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.7:1 | #46 of 309 | #3 of 25 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 72.3% | #24 of 309 | #8 of 25 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 34.3% | #241 of 319 | #12 of 26 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -3.4% | #146 of 178 | #10 of 15 |
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
2,434
-159 (-6%) vs 2020
+24% since 1990-91, when it was 1,970
Student : Teacher
11.7:1
was 13.8:1
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 | 2,434 | 208.4 | 11.7:1 | 34% (834) |
| 2023-24 | 2,473 | 219.4 | 11.3:1 | 33% (823) |
| 2022-23 | 2,530 | 166.5 | 15.2:1 | 32% (805) |
| 2020-21 | 2,593 | 188 | 13.8:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 2,520 | 190.9 | 13.2:1 | 29% (730) |
| 2015-16 | 2,480 | 189 | 13.1:1 | 27% (666) |
| 2010-11 | 2,158 | 111 | 19.4:1 | 29% (617) |
| 2000-01 | 1,696 | 130 | 13.1:1 | 19% (327) |
| 1990-91 | 1,970 | 120 | 16.4:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South Lakes High.
Since 2017-18: students down 3% (2,520 to 2,434); teachers up 9% (190.9 to 208.4).
About South Lakes High
The public high school South Lakes High is located in Reston, Virginia. It reported 2,434 students in grades 9 through 12 in 2024-25. High schools in Virginia have about 1,213 students on average; enrollment here is 101% higher.
Fairfax County Public Schools includes 199 schools. Together they enroll 179,323 students.
Of every 100 students at South Lakes High, about 40 are White, the largest group. The school is also 29% Hispanic, 13% Black, 10% Asian, and 8% multiracial. That is lower than the 49% White share among all Fairfax County residents. Its diversity index, the chance that two randomly chosen students belong to different racial or ethnic groups, is 72%.
Staffing at South Lakes High comes to 208.4 full-time-equivalent teachers, or 11.7:1. High schools in Virginia have an average ratio of 13.9:1. On the income side, 34% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. That is in line with the 37% average for public schools in Fairfax County.
Among Virginia public high schools, South Lakes High outscored 45%, which works out to a B- on the allk12 Grade.
Schools in Virginia with a similar free or reduced-price lunch share are predicted to score about 78.8%. South Lakes High scores 76.6%.
American Community Survey estimates for Fairfax County show that the median household earns about $153,637 a year, about 65% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 4%. Across Fairfax County, 222 public schools serve about 174,475 students.
About 0.2 miles separate South Lakes High from the closest public school, Hughes Middle. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. South Lakes High is 5th of 9 nearby schools by average proficiency rate.
NCES describes the area around South Lakes High as City: Small, meaning inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
The school's student count decreased 6% between the 2020-21 and 2024-25 school years. The school's ratio dropped from 13.8:1 to 11.7:1 between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
This page is a place to ask questions and share updates about open houses, carpools, and field trips at South Lakes High. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Fairfax County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
1,147,837
Census ACS
Median income
$153,637
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
65%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
222
174,475 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Fairfax County Public Schools
- Lake Braddock SecondaryHigh · 4,411 students
- Robinson SecondaryHigh · 3,710 students
- Hayfield SecondaryHigh · 3,256 students
- Chantilly HighHigh · 2,937 students
- West Springfield HighHigh · 2,799 students
- Westfield HighHigh · 2,737 students
Other schools in Reston
- Hughes MiddleMiddle · 1,012 students
- Dogwood ElementaryElementary · 745 students
- Hunters Woods Elementary School for the Arts and SciencesElementary · 726 students
- Lake Anne ElementaryElementary · 616 students
- Terraset ElementaryElementary · 598 students
- Sunrise Valley ElementaryElementary · 558 students
Nearby schools
- Hughes Middle0.2 mi · 1,012
- Terraset Elementary0.3 mi · 598
- Sunrise Valley Elementary1.2 mi · 558
- Hunters Woods Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences1.2 mi · 726
- Crossfield Elementary1.7 mi · 513
- Dogwood Elementary1.8 mi · 745
Frequently asked questions
About South Lakes HighHow many students attend South Lakes High?
South Lakes High enrolls approximately 2,434 students in grades 09-12.
Is South Lakes High an elementary, middle, or high school?
South Lakes High is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many teachers does South Lakes High have?
South Lakes High employs 208 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 11.7:1.
What is the student diversity at South Lakes High?
Student demographics at South Lakes High are roughly 40% White, 29% Hispanic, 13% Black, 10% Asian, 8% Two or more.
What district is South Lakes High in?
South Lakes High is part of Fairfax County Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.