Summary:
Lexington, Virginia is served by five public schools—one high school, two middle schools, and two elementary schools—that together enroll 2,400 students but belong to two very different public school districts: the top-ranked Lexington City Public Schools and the mid-tier Rockbridge County Public Schools.
The two schools in Lexington City form an elite pairing. Lylburn Downing Middle ranks #7 in Virginia (98th percentile) with extraordinary test scores—including 100% proficiency in Algebra I—even though 22.5% of its students are chronically absent. Harrington Waddell Elementary is nearly as impressive, ranking #76 statewide (93rd percentile) with 100% proficiency in 5th grade math and the lowest chronic absenteeism (4.3%) and poverty rate (25.4%) in the area. Remarkably, Harrington Waddell achieves this with the highest student-teacher ratio (14.5) and the lowest spending per student ($9,454), while Lylburn Downing's performance proves that a high absenteeism rate does not necessarily doom academic outcomes.
The Rockbridge County schools tell a more mixed story. Rockbridge County High is the area's only high school and its lowest-ranked school (19th percentile), with weak 10th grade Algebra I (28.57% proficiency) and high chronic absenteeism (22.8%), yet it still posts a 95.2% graduation rate. Maury River Middle is the most improved school, climbing to the 55th percentile, and spends the most per student ($12,051) with the lowest student-teacher ratio (10.9) while keeping absenteeism low at 9.9%. Central Elementary faces the highest poverty rate (85.8%) but still beats the state average in 5th grade math and science. Ultimately, poverty and spending are important factors, but the success of Lexington City's schools and Central Elementary's strong math results show they don't tell the whole story.
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