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Thomas Jefferson High School

Public Grades 9-12

296^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 340 Iowa High Schools

Better than 13% of Iowa high schools

Summary

Thomas Jefferson High School is a public high school located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, serving grades 9-12 with a total enrollment of 1,575 students. The school is part of the Cedar Rapids Community School District, which is ranked 279 out of 313 districts in Iowa and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Thomas Jefferson High School consistently underperforms compared to the district and state averages in academic metrics. The school's proficiency rates in 10th grade English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are significantly lower than the state averages, and its graduation rates have been below the district and state averages in recent years. Additionally, the school has a much higher chronic absenteeism rate compared to the district and state. These academic challenges may be linked to the school's high percentage of students from low-income families, which ranges from 56.38% to 62.85% in recent years.

Interestingly, nearby high schools like Solon High School and Mount Vernon High School outperform Thomas Jefferson High School across various academic metrics, including higher proficiency rates and graduation rates. This suggests that there is room for improvement at Thomas Jefferson High School, and targeted interventions and support may be necessary to address the academic and socioeconomic challenges facing the school and its students.

1,501

Students ?

17.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,251

Per pupil spending ?

60.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1243 20th ST SW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404

(319) 558-2435

District: Cedar Rapids Community School District

Feeder schools for Thomas Jefferson High School:

Elementary:	Cedar River Academy at Taylor
	Cleveland Elementary School
	Grant Elementary School
	Hoover Elementary School
	More...
	Van Buren Elementary School
	West Willow Elementary School
Middle:	Wilson Middle School

Racial breakdown:

White:

49.0%

African American:

28.2%

Hispanic:

11.5%

See top rated Iowa high schools

Compare Thomas Jefferson High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 9th percentile in 2015 → 13th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (56% vs 69% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (13th percentile)

!Graduation rate below the Iowa average (80% vs 88%)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school56%

District avg62%

Iowa avg69%

296^th of 340

Iowa public high schools ?

Bottom 13%▲ up 4 pts since 2015

From bottom 9% (2015) to bottom 13% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 4High Schools in the Cedar Rapids Community School District

279^th of 313Cedar Rapids Community School District among Iowa districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Iowa percentile	Rating
2025	18.9	296 of 340	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	8.8	315 of 338	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.8	317 of 336	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.1	312 of 332	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.1	301 of 327	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	26.4	269 of 327	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	8.1	302 of 320	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	16.1	296 of 325	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	28.6	254 of 320	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	13.6	294 of 324	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	24.9	269 of 322	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	44.7	244 of 351	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2012	45.9	239 of 351	31.9%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts64%-10 vs state

Science58%-9 vs state

Mathematics49%-18 vs state

3.0

3 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★0

4★2

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a citizen
Friday, June 1, 2012

In 1966 the school gained notoriety nationwide for expelling three students four times (Dick Douglas,Tom Hankins and Jimmy Carroll) because their hair touched the collar of their shirts. This made national headlines and principal William Paxton threatened Hankins and Douglas, telling them he would see to it that they would never get their diploma and graduate. Paxton also managed to turn the other students against the boys and they were physically attacked, in and out of school, on a near-daily basis by other students, with Paxton or the school doing nothing but laugh about it. Hankins and Douglas defended themselves and were never physically harmed, but their attackers weren't as lucky. As a coincidence, Hankins became a professional wrestler in 1973 and credits the many physical altercations as his first training, as the school kicked him off the wrestling team over the hair issue.
It seems the boys were playing in a rock band called The Untouchables and when they charted a double-sided hit record "Come On Baby" and "Stick Around", and when Paxton found out they were making more money than he was, he and the Cedar Rapids Public School Board conspired to get them out. The band notified the media and picketed the school with news crews present and brought the subject to light. The school was forced to let the boys back in after the media frenzy. That 45 RPM recording is selling for $1,000 on E Bay. Paxton and his thugs then focused on Hankins and would continually call him "into the office" and attemopt to berate and threaten him over non-school issues. Hankins refused to tolerate their hate and tore into them verbally, after which they left him alone. The boys did graduate, in spite of Paxton and the school board.
Douglas is still playing guitar in Iowa and Hankins, now retired from wrestling, became a record producer (as well as continuing to play bass and record with many artists) and is currently getting ready to go on the road and tour again as he just recently retired from production due to his frustration with his engineers and the decline of the record business. Close Quote

by a student
Thursday, April 30, 2009

Good school overall. Quite a bit of fighting/drug issues, but teachers are excellent Close Quote

Schools Near Thomas Jefferson High School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ISASP English Language Arts (2025)			ISASP Mathematics (2025)			ISASP Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISASP English Language Arts 9th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 10th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 11th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 9th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 10th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 11th Grade	ISASP Science 10th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Thomas Jefferson High School	Public	9-12	1243 20th ST SW	Cedar Rapids	52404	Linn County	Cedar Rapids Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 558-2435	1,501	85	17.6	60.5%	736 (49.0%)	424 (28.2%)	172 (11.5%)	23 (1.5%)	1 (0.1%)	15 (1.0%)	126 (8.4%)	18.9	296^th of 340 public high schools	12.9%		8.8	315^th of 338 public high schools	6.8%	19	68.1	65.2	57.7	52.6	48.5	44.5	57.6	$15,251	$1,064	$14,187
Metro High School	Public	9-12	1212 7th ST SE	Cedar Rapids	52401	Linn County	Cedar Rapids Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 558-3100	288	25	11.3	79.2%	146 (50.7%)	60 (20.8%)	26 (9.0%)	2 (0.7%)	3 (1.0%)	4 (1.4%)	46 (16.0%)	0.9	332^nd of 340 public high schools	2.4%		0.1	337^th of 338 public high schools	0.3%	5	42.9	43.8	20.6	17.2	38.2	14.7	35.3	$17,640	$336	$17,305
Empowering Excellence Charter School	Public, Charter	9-12	1800 1st Ave NE # 201	Cedar Rapids	52402	Linn County	Charter Organization: Empowering Youths of Iowa	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(319) 451-9243	120	1	120.0	86.7%	32 (26.7%)	61 (50.8%)	8 (6.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (13.3%)								(n/a)
George Washington High School	Public	9-12	2205 Forest DR SE	Cedar Rapids	52403	Linn County	Cedar Rapids Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 558-2161	1,182	77	15.2	54.7%	636 (53.8%)	294 (24.9%)	100 (8.5%)	16 (1.4%)	1 (0.1%)	4 (0.3%)	122 (10.3%)	32.8	267^th of 340 public high schools	21.5%		24.2	283^rd of 338 public high schools	16.3%	16	67.5	73.7	65.6	49.6	62.5	60.0	62.0	$16,333	$764	$15,569
John F Kennedy High School	Public	9-12	4545 Wenig RD NE	Cedar Rapids	52405	Linn County	Cedar Rapids Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 558-2251	1,648	93	17.7	36.0%	1,174 (71.2%)	159 (9.6%)	126 (7.6%)	46 (2.8%)	3 (0.2%)	2 (0.1%)	132 (8.0%)	47.9	205^th of 340 public high schools	39.7%		53.3	176^th of 338 public high schools	47.9%	29	79.0	74.7	68.3	67.1	67.6	65.1	62.4	$14,742	$564	$14,177
Prairie High School	Public	9-12	401 76th Ave SW	Cedar Rapids	52404	Linn County	College Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 848-5340	1,766	95	18.5	29.8%	1,243 (70.4%)	225 (12.7%)	123 (7.0%)	27 (1.5%)	2 (0.1%)	14 (0.8%)	128 (7.2%)	54.9	177^th of 340 public high schools	47.9%		22.6	288^th of 338 public high schools	14.8%	111	79.3	81.4	69.7	69.3	70.6	60.3	71.1	$14,453	$304	$14,149
Marion High School	Public	9-12	675 S 15th St	Marion	52302	Linn County	Marion Independent School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 377-9891	735	45	16.2	27.2%	605 (82.3%)	32 (4.4%)	42 (5.7%)	5 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	50 (6.8%)	51.6	193^rd of 340 public high schools	43.2%		42	233^rd of 338 public high schools	31.1%	40	82.1	72.9	75.4	66.1	63.7	63.7	69.9	$13,802	$140	$13,663
Linn-Mar High School	Public	9-12	3111 N 10th St	Marion	52302	Linn County	Linn-Mar Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 447-3040	2,229	130	17.1	23.1%	1,657 (74.3%)	151 (6.8%)	136 (6.1%)	130 (5.8%)	4 (0.2%)	5 (0.2%)	129 (5.8%)	61.6	145^th of 340 public high schools	57.4%		66.5	109^th of 338 public high schools	67.8%	36	81.6	77.7	70.8	73.2	76.7	68.8	73.5	$13,871	$299	$13,571
Alburnett Senior High School	Public	9-12	131 Roosevelt Street	Alburnett	52202	Linn County	Alburnett Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 842-2263	293	19	15.6	7.5%	278 (94.9%)	5 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.1%)	74.4	62^nd of 340 public high schools	81.8%		78	41^st of 338 public high schools	87.9%	21	86.5	83.8	83.8	74.3	75.7	88.2	72.6	$15,024	$123	$14,901
Mount Vernon High School	Public	9-12	731 Palisades Rd SW	Mount Vernon	52314	Linn County	Mount Vernon Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 895-8843	470	27	17.4	13.2%	422 (89.8%)	8 (1.7%)	11 (2.3%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.7%)	70.6	84^th of 340 public high schools	75.3%		76.1	52^nd of 338 public high schools	84.6%	32	80.6	69.4	79.5	86.4	83.3	84.4	75.0	$16,419	$191	$16,228

Frequently Asked Questions about Thomas Jefferson High School

Is Thomas Jefferson High School a good school?

Thomas Jefferson High School ranks in the bottom 12.9% of Iowa high schools.

How many students attend Thomas Jefferson High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,501 students attended Thomas Jefferson High School.

What is the racial makeup of Thomas Jefferson High School?

Students at Thomas Jefferson High School are 49% White, 28% African American, 11% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

What district is Thomas Jefferson High School in?

Cedar Rapids Community School District

What schools feed into Thomas Jefferson High School?

Thomas Jefferson High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Cedar River Academy at Taylor
Elementary : Cleveland Elementary School
Elementary : Grant Elementary School
Elementary : Hoover Elementary School
Elementary : Van Buren Elementary School
Elementary : West Willow Elementary School
Middle : Wilson Middle School

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Iowa Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.