Summary:
Dawson Springs Independent has two schools serving 631 students from prekindergarten through grade 12: Dawson Springs Elementary serves PK–5, and Dawson Springs Junior/Senior High School serves grades 6–12. The high school combines strong graduation outcomes—97% in 2025–2026, compared with 94% statewide—with a concern: 35% of students were chronically absent, versus 24% statewide. Elementary chronic absenteeism was lower, at 15%. The clearest overall finding is that results vary sharply by grade and subject, with school-to-state gaps spanning 45 points, from 21 points below state results to 24 points above.
The high school stands out in SchoolDigger’s latest rankings: 47th of 262 high schools, in the 82nd percentile with four stars, compared with the elementary school’s 421st of 684, in the 38th percentile with two stars. The high school’s strongest reported test result is grade 10 math, with 64% proficient versus 40% statewide; grade 11 writing is also above state results, 59% versus 47%. At the elementary school, grade 4 is a bright spot: science is 58% versus 40% statewide, math 49% versus 43%, and reading 53% versus 50%. Grade 5 is the clearest weakness, including math at 23% versus 43% statewide and editing and mechanics at 27% versus 48%.
Over time, results moved in different directions by grade: the elementary school’s SchoolDigger percentile rose from 31 to 38 between 2023–2024 and 2025–2026, while the high school’s fell from 96 to 82. Among test results available in both years, the average school-to-state gap shifted down by about 2 points, but this masks large changes: elementary grade 4 math rose from 27% to 49%, while grade 5 math fell from 57% to 23%; high-school grade 8 writing climbed from 30% to 50%, while grade 10 math declined from 86% to 64%. For context, in 2024–2025, free/reduced lunch eligible students made up 78% at the elementary school and 62% at the high school; student-teacher ratios were 14.9 and 13.4, respectively. These differences describe the schools but do not explain their results.
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