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Test scores delayed: 2025-2026 science scores will be released by the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education in October, at which point rankings will be updated.

Duke Ellington School of the Arts

Q: Is Duke Ellington School of the Arts a good school?

Duke Ellington School of the Arts ranks 8 th of 37 District Of Columbia high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

8^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 37 District Of Columbia High Schools

Better than 78% of District Of Columbia high schools

Summary

Duke Ellington School of the Arts is a public high school in the District of Columbia Public Schools system serving 589 students in grades 9–12 in Northwest Washington, DC, with a specialized focus on arts education. For the 2025–26 school year, it ranks 8th out of 36 DC high schools (78th percentile) with a 4-star rating, a position that has remained stable over the past decade.

The school's most distinctive academic profile is the wide gap between literacy and STEM. ELA proficiency is strong, with 53.6% of students proficient in 2025–26 compared to 39.6% statewide, and graduation rates have historically been excellent at 97–100%, far above the statewide average of 71–75%. However, math proficiency is just 16.1% versus 28.2% statewide, and science proficiency is similarly low at 9.3%. Algebra I proficiency has been especially weak, ranging from 7–12% in recent years. The school performs notably well for underserved student subgroups, ranking in the top tier of DC high schools for African American students, Hispanic students, low-socioeconomic-status students, and at-risk students. Duke Ellington also spends more per student than any nearby school at $35,010, though its reported student–teacher ratio of 28.0 is much higher than neighboring schools, which may reflect larger class sizes or data reporting differences.

Compared to nearby schools, Duke Ellington sits comfortably above the non-selective neighborhood high schools in the area. Its ELA proficiency is roughly 2.5 to 3 times higher than Roosevelt High School (17.8%), Cardozo Education Campus (19.2%), and Columbia Heights Education Campus (36.0%), and its graduation rate dramatically exceeds theirs. However, it does not match the academic tier of the city's elite magnets: BASIS DC (78.6% ELA, 70.8% math), Benjamin Banneker High School (85.6% ELA, 64.4% math), and School Without Walls High School (95.9% ELA, 71.7% math) all outperform it substantially, especially in math. For families seeking an arts-rich high school with strong literacy outcomes and a proven record of graduating students, Duke Ellington stands out as a clearly better option than the nearby zoned comprehensive schools.

589

Students ?

28.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$34,211

Per pupil spending ?

22.4%

Directly certified for free meals (2024-25) ?

3500 R St. NW
Washington, DC 20007

(202) 282-0123

District: District of Columbia Public Schools

Racial breakdown:

African American:

66.0%

White:

13.9%

Hispanic:

13.6%

See top rated District Of Columbia high schools

Compare Duke Ellington School of the Arts to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 79th percentile in 2015 → 78th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranks in the top 22% of District Of Columbia high schools

✓98% graduate in 4 years — above the District Of Columbia average (75%)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Mathematics scores 12 pts below the District Of Columbia average

!Large classes — about 28 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school34%

District avg40%

District Of Columbia avg36%

8^th of 37

District Of Columbia public high schools ?

Top 22%▲ up 1 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of District Of Columbia High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 18High Schools in the District of Columbia Public Schools

19^th of 46District of Columbia Public Schools among District Of Columbia 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	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	67.4	8 of 37	78.4%	★★★★☆
2025	66.9	7 of 35	80.0%	★★★★☆
2024	55.0	6 of 34	82.4%	★★★★☆
2023	64.0	6 of 34	82.4%	★★★★☆
2022	64.1	5 of 30	83.3%	★★★★☆
2019	63.8	9 of 34	73.5%	★★★★☆
2018	65.4	6 of 34	82.4%	★★★★☆
2017	63.6	8 of 34	76.5%	★★★★☆
2016	62.6	7 of 31	77.4%	★★★★☆
2015	62.5	6 of 29	79.3%	★★★★☆
2014	85.6	8 of 35	77.1%	★★★★☆
2012	80.1	7 of 31	77.4%	★★★★☆
2011	88.8	6 of 31	80.6%	★★★★☆
2010	85.2	6 of 30	80.0%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	64.4	6 of 35	82.9%	★★★★☆
2025	71.8	5 of 32	84.4%	★★★★☆
2024	46.5	6 of 28	78.6%	★★★★☆
2023	55.6	5 of 27	81.5%	★★★★☆
2022	65.2	5 of 18	72.2%	★★★★☆
2019	66.0	7 of 33	78.8%	★★★★☆
2018	73.4	7 of 34	79.4%	★★★★☆

At Risk

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2022	98.7	1 of 19	94.7%	★★★★★
2019	62.8	6 of 31	80.6%	★★★★☆
2018	61.5	7 of 33	78.8%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	64.9	9 of 31	71.0%	★★★★☆
2018	68.1	8 of 32	75.0%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	67.2	3 of 13	76.9%	★★★★☆
2025	69.6	4 of 14	71.4%	★★★★☆
2024	70.8	4 of 13	69.2%	★★★★☆
2023	65.1	4 of 13	69.2%	★★★★☆
2019	47.4	5 of 13	61.5%	★★★★☆
2018	60.3	2 of 11	81.8%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	72.9	5 of 33	84.8%	★★★★☆
2025	71.3	3 of 32	90.6%	★★★★★
2024	52.5	7 of 28	75.0%	★★★★☆
2023	59.6	4 of 30	86.7%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2019	56.0	9 of 32	71.9%	★★★★☆
2018	61.6	7 of 33	78.8%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2026	36.9	10 of 15	33.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	68.6	4 of 10	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	91.5	1 of 10	90.0%	★★★★★
2022	99.5	1 of 4	75.0%	★★★★★
2018	74.5	3 of 26	88.5%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	District Of Columbia percentile	Rating
2025	46.1	4 of 5	20.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	29.9	6 of 7	14.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.7	4 of 6	33.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.5	3 of 5	40.0%	★★★★☆
2019	37.3	4 of 6	33.3%	★★★☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

At Risk (2022)95th percentile+11 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)85th percentile+6 vs school

African American (2026)83rd percentile+4 vs school

Hispanic (2026)77th percentile~ school

Male (2019)72nd percentile~ school

Female (2019)71st percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2026)33rd percentile-45 vs school

White (2025)20th percentile-60 vs school

By subject vs District Of Columbia (2025-2026) ?

English I54%+17 vs state

English Language Arts54%+14 vs state

English II53%+15 vs state

Geometry18%+4 vs state

Mathematics16%-12 vs state

Algebra I12%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Duke Ellington School of the Arts

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				DC CAPE English Language Arts (2026)				DC CAPE Mathematics (2026)				DC CAPE English II (2026)	DC CAPE Algebra II (2026)	DC CAPE Algebra I (2026)	DC CAPE Geometry (2026)	DC CAPE English I (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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	Directly certified (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	DC CAPE English Language Arts 6th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 7th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts 8th Grade	DC CAPE English Language Arts All Grades	DC CAPE Mathematics 6th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 7th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics 8th Grade	DC CAPE Mathematics All Grades	DC CAPE English II End of Course	DC CAPE Algebra II End of Course	DC CAPE Algebra I End of Course	DC CAPE Geometry End of Course	DC CAPE English I End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Duke Ellington School of the Arts	Public	9-12	3500 R St. NW	Washington	20007	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 282-0123	589	21	28.0	22.4%	82 (13.9%)	389 (66.0%)	80 (13.6%)	8 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.2%)	67.4	8^th of 37 public high schools	78.4%		66.9	7^th of 35 public high schools	80.0%	1				53.6				16.1	53.0		11.8	18.3	54.2	$34,211	$2,077	$32,134
MacArthur High School	Public	9-12	4530 MacArthur Blvd NW	Washington	20007	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(202) 299-5506	390	37	10.6	29.5%	68 (17.4%)	231 (59.2%)	65 (16.7%)	10 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (4.1%)	54.1	9^th of 37 public high schools	75.7%					(n/a)				42.2				14.6	33.4		12.3	11.4	48.8	$23,431	$1,925	$21,507
School Without Walls High School	Public	9-12	2130 G St. NW	Washington	20037	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 645-9690	606	38	16.1	6.8%	296 (48.8%)	138 (22.8%)	78 (12.9%)	31 (5.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	57 (9.4%)	91.4	4^th of 37 public high schools	89.2%		99.4	1^st of 35 public high schools	97.1%	3				95.9				71.7	95.8	90.9		66.7	96.0	$27,603	$2,088	$25,515
Goodwill Excel Center PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	1776 G Street NW	Washington	20006	District Of Columbia	Goodwill Excel Center PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 839-3650	440	29	15.1	83.2%	2 (0.5%)	413 (93.9%)	20 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.9%)								(n/a)														$27,564	$42	$27,522
Columbia Heights Education Campus	Public	6-12	3101 16th St. NW	Washington	20010	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 939-7700	1,563	149	10.4	45.9%	14 (0.9%)	445 (28.5%)	1,070 (68.5%)	21 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	11 (0.7%)	41.3	16^th of 37 public high schools	56.8%		38.2	17^th of 35 public high schools	51.4%	1	32.9	38.3	39.4	36.0	34.2	17.4	7.3	13.3	37.4		2.1	6.6	32.8	$29,077	$2,504	$26,573
Cardozo Education Campus	Public	7-12	1200 Clifton St. NW	Washington	20009	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 673-7385	710	78	9.0	54.5%	6 (0.8%)	334 (47.0%)	356 (50.1%)	10 (1.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	27.8	29^th of 37 public high schools	21.6%		20.7	31^st of 35 public high schools	11.4%	2			24.0	19.2		3.9	2.0	3.4	16.7		4.2	3.4	19.7	$34,825	$2,658	$32,167
Garnet-Patterson STAY High School	Public	9-12	2001 10th St NW	Washington	20001	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 576-8399	432	51	8.4	—	1 (0.2%)	261 (60.4%)	164 (38.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)								(n/a)				4.8										$26,005	$2,131	$23,874
Benjamin Banneker High School	Public	9-12	1600 9th St. NW	Washington	20001	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 671-6320	703	43	16.3	21.3%	65 (9.2%)	482 (68.6%)	122 (17.4%)	11 (1.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (3.1%)	98.9	2^nd of 37 public high schools	94.6%		93.4	3^rd of 35 public high schools	91.4%	1				85.6				64.4	89.9		67.1	61.1	81.9	$21,827	$2,084	$19,743
Jackson-Reed High School	Public	9-12	3950 Chesapeake St. NW	Washington	20016	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	No	(202) 282-0120	1,855	136	13.6	13.8%	672 (36.2%)	487 (26.3%)	476 (25.7%)	105 (5.7%)	4 (0.2%)	4 (0.2%)	104 (5.6%)	85.2	6^th of 37 public high schools	83.8%		80.3	5^th of 35 public high schools	85.7%	1				68.7				34.9	69.6	92.0	20.7	38.5	67.7	$25,625	$2,109	$23,516
Girls Global Academy PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	733 8th Street NW	Washington	20001	District Of Columbia	Girls Global Academy PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 600-4822	183	26	7.1	62.3%	1 (0.5%)	153 (83.6%)	23 (12.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.7%)	28.2	28^th of 37 public high schools	24.3%		35.3	19^th of 35 public high schools	45.7%	9				20.1				1.2	28.5			2.7	12.5	$35,496	$2,537	$32,958

Frequently Asked Questions about Duke Ellington School of the Arts

What district is Duke Ellington School of the Arts in?

District of Columbia Public Schools

What is the racial makeup of Duke Ellington School of the Arts?

Students at Duke Ellington School of the Arts are 66% African American, 14% White, 14% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

How many students attend Duke Ellington School of the Arts?

In the 2024-25 school year, 589 students attended Duke Ellington School of the Arts.

Is Duke Ellington School of the Arts a good school?

Duke Ellington School of the Arts ranks 8^th of 37 District Of Columbia high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate Duke Ellington School of the Arts!

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Latest District Of Columbia data All new data »

2024–25 school spending dataSep 2, 2026

2025–26 DC CAPE test scoresAug 20, 2026

2024–25 DC Science test scoresDec 5, 2025

2024–25 graduation ratesDec 4, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent 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.