Fayette County Public Schools outscored Kentucky at every level in 2026. Graduation hit 93.9% and no school was flagged for support. The scores by school.
Fayette County Public Schools outscored the Kentucky average at the elementary, middle and high school levels in 2026. Forty-six of its 57 rated schools, or 81%, landed in the state’s top three performance ranges.
The Kentucky Department of Education released the ratings just after midnight Thursday, Oct. 15. The district published its results the same day in a news release and a school-by-school summary.
The headline numbers
The district reported:
- no schools flagged for Targeted Support and Improvement, the first time since the current system began in 2018
- no schools flagged for Comprehensive Support and Improvement, the second time in three years
- a four-year graduation rate of 93.9%, an all-time high
- a postsecondary readiness rate of 86.4%, up from 69.4% in 2022
- green School Climate and Safety ratings at the elementary, middle and high school levels, for the first time
- gains at every school that was rated very low in 2025
“This is very strong data and I want our community to feel a sense of pride in how our students are performing,” Interim Superintendent Bill Bradford said in the release.
How the 57 schools were rated
Kentucky sorts schools into five color-coded ranges, from blue (very high) to red (very low). In Fayette County, 14 schools were rated blue, 14 green, 18 yellow, 10 orange and one red.
Fayette against the state
The district’s overall scores were higher than the statewide figures at all three levels, according to its summary:
| Level | Fayette County | Kentucky |
|---|---|---|
| Elementary | 71.1 | 64.7 |
| Middle | 63.0 | 59.1 |
| High | 71.8 | 67.5 |
The highest and lowest scores
The summary lists an overall score for every school. The highest were:
- SCAPA at Bluegrass middle grades: 102.4
- Meadowthorpe Elementary: 99.3
- SCAPA elementary grades: 97.7
- Clays Mill Elementary: 93.3
- Rosa Parks Elementary: 92.5
- Cassidy Elementary: 90.9
- Stonewall Elementary: 90.0
Among high schools, Lafayette scored highest at 86.9. Henry Clay followed at 77.0 and Paul Laurence Dunbar at 74.5.
The lowest overall scores were at Booker T. Washington Elementary (34.2), William Wells Brown Elementary (38.8), Northern Elementary (39.3) and Harrison Elementary (39.8).
Where the gaps remain
Kentucky also checks how each group of students performs, by race, family income, English proficiency and special education. A school whose flagged groups do not improve moves into Additional Targeted Support and Improvement, or ATSI.
Ten Fayette schools carry that label this year, down from 12 in 2025. The summary lists:
- Students receiving special education services: Millcreek Elementary, Bryan Station Middle, Leestown Middle, Lexington Middle and Tates Creek Middle
- English learners: Bryan Station High and Paul Laurence Dunbar High
- Both groups: Southern Middle, Winburn Middle and Henry Clay High
Across the district, 325 of 337 student groups met federal thresholds. The 12 that fell short compare with 64 in 2022.
Bradford said the results are “our new floor” and “not our new ceiling.” He said the district will use the data in its improvement plans.
What it means for you
- Look up your child’s school. The district summary has every school’s score, and the state’s School Report Card breaks each one down by subject and student group.
- Check the detail behind a score. The state builds each rating from test results on the Kentucky Summative Assessment and other measures, including graduation and postsecondary readiness. Two schools with similar overall scores can have very different strengths.
- Ask at school. If your child’s school carries an ATSI label, ask the principal or the school’s site-based council what it is doing for the student groups named.
- Not sure which school you are zoned for? Our Lexington public schools guide lists every school with its own page.
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