LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky Department of Education released a statewide “report card” on school performance based on testing done last spring, when many students took park in a new form of standardized testing across the state. 

Overall, Fayette County Public Schools ranked above average in several key metrics.

State accountability testing, with a color coded ranking system, is the new measure of success in education across the state. 

Unhappy with their above-average results, FCPS Superintendent Demetrus Liggins said his students are more than the scores on these tests. 

“Our students are coming to us at a time where our community is experiencing more violence and more things in their neighborhoods,” Liggins said. “And we’re having to address those concerns before students are ready to sit down and learn.”

The school district was above average for test scores across the state. Elementary, middle and high schools earned varying scores and different color codes throughout the 55 schools, with red being the worst and blue being the best.

“The scores that we’ve received are unacceptable and we absolutely have to do everything we can to ensure that this pandemic does not define the trajectory of our students and the trajectory of their learning experiences and lives,” Liggins said.

The School for the Creative and Performing Arts had the highest test results at 94, while William Wells Brown Elementary and Harrison Elementary had the lowest at 33.

“What we see in our schools is largely a result of generational trauma and poverty, and even so the root cause does not absolve us from the responsibility to change that outcome,” Liggins said. 

This year, with efforts to increase test scores, Liggins said the school district is shifting their focus to three points: Leadership, instruction and meaningful partnerships within the community. 

“Important qualities our students possess cannot be measured on an assignment or an assessment that is given a few hours or a few days out of an entire school year. Our students are people with unique talents and skills and much more,” Liggins said.

Besides testing, students also took part in a survey. On average, students felt safe in FCPS schools, and felt like there were individuals who cared about them, and to Liggins that’s a report he is proud of.

Out of 55 schools in Fayette County, seven of the schools were in the blue, whereas a majority of the schools fell into the orange category of “low” test results.