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Lawrence Gardner High School

Q: Is Lawrence Gardner High School a good school?

Lawrence Gardner High School ranks in the bottom 1.2% of Kansas high schools.

Q: How many students attend Lawrence Gardner High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 111 students attended Lawrence Gardner High School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Lawrence Gardner High School?

Students at Lawrence Gardner High School are 43% White, 33% African American, 23% Hispanic.

Public Grades 7-12

328^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 332 Kansas High Schools

Better than 1% of Kansas high schools

Summary

Lawrence Gardner High School is a public high school located in Topeka, Kansas, serving grades 7-12 with a total enrollment of just 77 students. The school is part of the Department of Corrections district, which is ranked 263 out of 264 districts in Kansas and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

The data reveals that Lawrence Gardner High School is significantly underperforming compared to nearby high-performing schools, such as Shawnee Heights High, Royal Valley High, and Silver Lake Junior-Senior High. The school has a very low enrollment, poor academic performance, high rates of disadvantaged student groups, and high dropout and chronic absenteeism rates, all of which are significantly worse than the state averages.

The data suggests that Lawrence Gardner High School faces significant challenges in providing a quality education to its students. The school's location within the Department of Corrections district and the high proportion of disadvantaged student groups may be contributing factors to the school's poor performance. Addressing these challenges and implementing targeted interventions will be crucial for improving the educational outcomes at this school.

111

Students ?

41.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

91.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1430 NW 25th ST
Topeka, KS 66618

(785) 746-7266

District: Department of Corrections

Racial breakdown:

White:

43.2%

African American:

33.3%

Hispanic:

22.5%

See top rated Kansas high schools

Compare Lawrence Gardner High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 1st percentile in 2019 → 1st in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Kansas average (8% vs 42% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (1st percentile)

!Graduation rate below the Kansas average (11% vs 90%)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school8%

District avg8%

Kansas avg42%

328^th of 332

Kansas public high schools ?

Bottom 1%▲ up 1 pts since 2019

See the entire ranking list of Kansas High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

263^rd of 264Department of Corrections among Kansas 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	Kansas percentile	Rating
2025	2.8	328 of 332	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.6	320 of 327	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.4	323 of 324	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	4.2	312 of 320	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	3.3	323 of 325	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2023	15.4	49 of 53	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.4	47 of 48	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2019	25.4	103 of 111	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Foster Care

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2019	7.9	1 of 1	0.0%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2025	4.3	240 of 246	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.6	243 of 250	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.5	221 of 223	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.2	208 of 213	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.4	222 of 229	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2021	4.9	253 of 258	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	3.7	249 of 252	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2022	27.6	94 of 117	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.4	103 of 111	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Kansas percentile	Rating
2022	2.7	307 of 307	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Special Education (2022)20th percentile+19 vs school

African American (2023)8th percentile+5 vs school

Disabled (2019)7th percentile+7 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)2nd percentile~ school

Male (2021)2nd percentile~ school

Foster Care (2019)<1st percentile~ school

White (2022)<1st percentile~ school

By subject vs Kansas (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics11%-28 vs state

English Language Arts5%-40 vs state

★

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Schools Near Lawrence Gardner High School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				KAP English Language Arts (2025)				KAP Mathematics (2025)				KAP Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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	KAP English Language Arts 7th Grade	KAP English Language Arts 8th Grade	KAP English Language Arts 10th Grade	KAP English Language Arts All Grades	KAP Mathematics 7th Grade	KAP Mathematics 8th Grade	KAP Mathematics 10th Grade	KAP Mathematics All Grades	KAP Science 8th Grade	KAP Science All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Lawrence Gardner High School	Public	7-12	1430 NW 25th ST	Topeka	66618	Shawnee County	Department of Corrections	No	No	No	No	(785) 746-7266	111	3	41.7	91.9%	48 (43.2%)	37 (33.3%)	25 (22.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2.8	328^th of 332 public high schools	1.2%					(n/a)			5.3	4.8			5.9	10.5
Seaman High	Public	9-12	4850 Rochester Rd	Topeka	66617	Shawnee County	Seaman	No	No	No	No	(785) 286-8300	1,190	84	14.1	35.1%	985 (82.8%)	26 (2.2%)	99 (8.3%)	8 (0.7%)	11 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	61 (5.1%)	67.9	88^th of 332 public high schools	73.5%		31.9	239^th of 318 public high schools	24.8%	151			40.7	40.7			47.4	47.4			$12,872	$602	$12,269
Capital City	Public	6-12	500 SW Tuffy Kellog Dr	Topeka	66606	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(785) 295-3600	0	21	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)				0.0				0.0			$66,468	$8,456	$58,012
Topeka High	Public	9-12	800 SW 10th St	Topeka	66612	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(785) 295-3150	1,578	108	14.6	67.4%	500 (31.7%)	181 (11.5%)	675 (42.8%)	6 (0.4%)	14 (0.9%)	3 (0.2%)	199 (12.6%)	32.1	237^th of 332 public high schools	28.6%		21.9	270^th of 318 public high schools	15.1%	33			35.1	35.1			21.1	21.1			$15,330	$2,821	$12,509
Hope Street Charter Academy	Public, Charter	10-12	1900 SW Hope Street	Topeka	66604	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	Yes	No	No	No	(785) 438-4280	103	16	6.2	78.6%	44 (42.7%)	12 (11.7%)	32 (31.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (13.6%)	6.9	317^th of 332 public high schools	4.5%		13.1	293^rd of 318 public high schools	7.9%	24			16.7	16.7			10.0	10.0			$36,065	$2,346	$33,719
Highland Park High	Public	9-12	2424 SE California Ave	Topeka	66605	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(785) 274-6000	835	58	14.3	80.5%	138 (16.5%)	187 (22.4%)	403 (48.3%)	1 (0.1%)	6 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	100 (12.0%)	5.2	321^st of 332 public high schools	3.3%		9.6	302^nd of 318 public high schools	5.0%	19			17.1	17.1			3.9	3.9			$16,941	$3,098	$13,844
Topeka West High	Public	9-12	2001 SW Fairlawn Rd	Topeka	66604	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(785) 438-4000	971	73	13.3	56.2%	424 (43.7%)	130 (13.4%)	245 (25.2%)	9 (0.9%)	4 (0.4%)	3 (0.3%)	156 (16.1%)	39	212^th of 332 public high schools	36.1%		36.4	220^th of 318 public high schools	30.8%	8			37.6	37.6			24.8	24.8			$14,940	$1,899	$13,040
Avondale Academy	Public	6-12	200 SE 40th St	Topeka	66609	Shawnee County	Topeka Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(785) 730-8250	23	9	2.4	87.0%	6 (26.1%)	5 (21.7%)	8 (34.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (17.4%)								(n/a)				0.0				0.0			$6,547	$757	$5,790
Jefferson West High	Public	9-12	619 Condray St	Meriden	66512	Jefferson County	Jefferson West	No	No	No	No	(785) 484-3331	247	20	12.1	30.0%	218 (88.3%)	2 (0.8%)	11 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (5.7%)	49.6	161^st of 332 public high schools	51.5%		60.8	106^th of 318 public high schools	66.7%	55			38.5	38.5			33.3	33.3			$17,364	$886	$16,478
Silver Lake Junior-Senior High	Public	7-12	200 E. Lake	Silver Lake	66539	Shawnee County	Silver Lake	No	No	No	No	(785) 582-4639	355	33	10.7	20.8%	321 (90.4%)	3 (0.8%)	23 (6.5%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.7%)	84.7	39^th of 332 public high schools	88.3%		63	93^rd of 318 public high schools	70.8%	54	61.3	63.6	58.0	61.1	61.3	69.1	47.1	59.5	60.0	58.9	$15,444	$2,896	$12,548

Frequently Asked Questions about Lawrence Gardner High School

Is Lawrence Gardner High School a good school?

Lawrence Gardner High School ranks in the bottom 1.2% of Kansas high schools.

What is the racial makeup of Lawrence Gardner High School?

Students at Lawrence Gardner High School are 43% White, 33% African American, 23% Hispanic.

What district is Lawrence Gardner High School in?

Department of Corrections

How many students attend Lawrence Gardner High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 111 students attended Lawrence Gardner High School.

Rate Lawrence Gardner High 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 Kansas State 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.