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Frederick Douglass High School

Public, Magnet Grades 9-12
104th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 254 Kentucky High Schools
Better than 59% of Kentucky high schools
Summary

Frederick Douglass High School is a public magnet high school in Lexington, Kentucky, serving 1,719 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the Fayette County School District, which is ranked 74 out of 157 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Frederick Douglass High School has seen fluctuating academic performance in recent years. Its statewide ranking has ranged from 36th out of 271 Kentucky high schools in 2021-2022 to 115th out of 290 in 2023-2024, and its SchoolDigger rating has varied from 4 stars to 3 stars. The school's performance also varies significantly across different student subgroups, with White students consistently ranking in the top 30 in the state, while Hispanic and Special Education students perform much lower. The school maintains a relatively high graduation rate of 92.2% to 97.1%, but its test scores lag behind the district and state averages, particularly in Science.

Compared to nearby schools like Opportunity Middle College, STEAM Academy, and Henry Clay High School, Frederick Douglass High School generally underperforms in terms of statewide rankings, test scores, and other key metrics. The school also faces challenges with a relatively high chronic absenteeism rate and a high student-teacher ratio, which may contribute to its academic struggles despite increased spending per student in recent years.

1,770
Students ?
17.9
Student/teacher ratio ?
$21,401
Per pupil spending ?
46.2%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 2000 Winchester Road
       Lexington, KY  40509-4050

(859) 381-3780

District: Fayette County


Feeder schools for Frederick Douglass High School:

Elementary:    Dixie Elementary Magnet School
    Garrett Morgan Elementary
    Liberty Elementary
    William Wells Brown Elementary
    More...
Middle:    Crawford Middle School
Racial breakdown:

White:
42.6%
African American:
30.3%
Hispanic:
16.6%
more
 See top rated Kentucky high schools

 Compare Frederick Douglass High School to nearby high schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Holding steady — 59th percentile in 2019 → 59th in 2025
Strengths
97% graduate in 4 years — above the Kentucky average (94%)
Above the Kentucky median (59th percentile)
Worth a look
!High chronic absenteeism (44% vs 25% Kentucky)
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school41%
District avg44%
Kentucky avg39%
104th of 254
Kentucky public high schools ?
Top 41%▬ steady since 2019
See the entire ranking list of Kentucky High Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
6th of 11High Schools in the Fayette County
74th of 157Fayette County among Kentucky 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202555.3104 of 25459.1%★★★☆☆
202456.7115 of 29060.3%★★★☆☆
202363.575 of 27672.8%★★★★☆
202275.536 of 27186.7%★★★★☆
202166.355 of 26779.4%★★★★☆
201954.0117 of 28558.9%★★★☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202556.027 of 7564.0%★★★☆☆
202437.255 of 9340.9%★★☆☆☆
202351.928 of 8366.3%★★★☆☆
202272.316 of 8982.0%★★★★☆
202147.032 of 7859.0%★★★☆☆
201955.533 of 8962.9%★★★☆☆

Asian

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202561.210 of 2560.0%★★★☆☆
202460.212 of 2755.6%★★★☆☆
202348.314 of 2646.2%★★★☆☆
202250.911 of 2860.7%★★★☆☆
202135.214 of 2339.1%★★☆☆☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202229.4119 of 15322.2%★☆☆☆☆
202131.2105 of 15431.8%★★☆☆☆
201929.0126 of 16624.1%★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202448.519 of 4860.4%★★★☆☆
202345.518 of 4156.1%★★★☆☆
202260.17 of 3781.1%★★★★☆
202158.35 of 2982.8%★★★★☆
201927.326 of 2910.3%★☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202555.990 of 23962.3%★★★☆☆
202449.7128 of 26151.0%★★★☆☆
202355.999 of 25360.9%★★★☆☆
202276.828 of 25288.9%★★★★☆
202165.351 of 23678.4%★★★★☆
201950.6140 of 24943.8%★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202555.69 of 1747.1%★★★☆☆
202290.41 of 3897.4%★★★★★
201945.068 of 10233.3%★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202525.893 of 11519.1%★☆☆☆☆
202448.060 of 12451.6%★★★☆☆
202354.745 of 11661.2%★★★☆☆
202253.450 of 11456.1%★★★☆☆
202161.128 of 9269.6%★★★★☆
201937.656 of 8836.4%★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202532.5172 of 24228.9%★☆☆☆☆
202435.9180 of 27434.3%★★☆☆☆
202349.4124 of 27254.4%★★★☆☆
202252.3108 of 26659.4%★★★☆☆
202137.3159 of 23432.1%★★☆☆☆
201952.5127 of 25450.0%★★★☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202544.9128 of 23946.4%★★☆☆☆
202456.6101 of 26261.5%★★★☆☆
202366.258 of 25977.6%★★★★☆
202269.350 of 25780.5%★★★★☆
202153.972 of 23869.7%★★★★☆
201954.7110 of 25156.2%★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202549.343 of 8951.7%★★★☆☆
202436.460 of 8731.0%★★☆☆☆
202359.227 of 7664.5%★★★☆☆
202265.214 of 7781.8%★★★★☆
202137.534 of 4930.6%★★☆☆☆
201972.58 of 3979.5%★★★★☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202523.075 of 8612.8%★☆☆☆☆
202421.3148 of 16811.9%★☆☆☆☆
202325.4133 of 16217.9%★☆☆☆☆
201952.1110 of 22651.3%★★★☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankKentucky percentileRating
202583.228 of 25188.8%★★★★☆
202480.831 of 27388.6%★★★★☆
202384.724 of 26490.9%★★★★★
202292.510 of 26096.2%★★★★★
202188.316 of 20392.1%★★★★★
201974.142 of 21980.8%★★★★☆
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)
White (2025)89th percentile+30 vs school
African American (2025)64th percentile+5 vs school
Female (2025)62nd percentile+3 vs school
English Language Learner (2024)60th percentile~ school
Asian (2025)60th percentile~ school
Multi-racial (2025)52nd percentile-7 vs school
Gifted and Talented (2025)47th percentile-12 vs school
Male (2025)46th percentile-13 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)29th percentile-30 vs school
Disabled (2022)22nd percentile-64 vs school
Hispanic (2025)19th percentile-40 vs school
Special Education (2025)13th percentile-46 vs school
By subject vs Kentucky (2024-2025) ?
Reading48%~ state avg
Social Studies48%+10 vs state
Writing47%~ state avg
Editing and Mechanics43%~ state avg
Mathematics38%-3 vs state
Science21%~ state avg

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Frequently Asked Questions about Frederick Douglass High School

Students at Frederick Douglass High School are 43% White, 30% African American, 17% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

Frederick Douglass High School ranks 104th of 254 Kentucky high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,770 students attended Frederick Douglass High School.

Frederick Douglass High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Dixie Elementary Magnet School
Elementary : Garrett Morgan Elementary
Elementary : Liberty Elementary
Elementary : William Wells Brown Elementary
Elementary : Yates Elementary School
Middle : Crawford 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 Kentucky 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.





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