John F Kennedy High School

Summary:

John F Kennedy High School is a public high school in Denver, Colorado, serving 789 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the School District No. 1, which is ranked 78 out of 116 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

One key differentiating factor for John F Kennedy High School is its significantly higher percentage of Hispanic students (78.2%) compared to the surrounding schools and the state average. However, the school consistently ranks in the bottom 25% of Colorado high schools, with a statewide ranking between 206 and 318 over the past several years. Its performance on standardized tests, such as CMAS, SAT, and PSAT, is significantly lower than the district and state averages across all subject areas and grade levels. Additionally, the school has a very high percentage of students (around 75%) receiving free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage among the student population.

When compared to nearby schools like DSST: College View High School, Bear Creek High School, and Alameda International Junior/Senior High School, John F Kennedy High School performs significantly worse on academic measures, despite having a lower student-teacher ratio. This suggests that factors beyond just staffing levels, such as curriculum, instructional practices, and school culture, may be contributing to the school's underperformance.


Detail:

Public 9-12

 2855 South Lamar Street
       Denver, CO  80227-3809


(720) 423-4300

District: School District No. 1

SchoolDigger Rank:
311th of 349 Colorado High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $20,473 Help


Feeder schools for John F Kennedy High School:

Elementary:    Doull Elementary School
    Force Elementary School
    Grant Ranch Ece-8 School
    Gust Elementary School
    More...
Middle:    Bear Valley International School
    Rocky Mountain Prep Federal

Student/teacher ratio:  12.5 Help
Number of students:  789

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
78.2%
White:
10.0%
Asian:
5.7%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  77.9% Help


 See top rated Colorado high schools

 Compare John F Kennedy High School to nearby high schools!

Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details John F Kennedy High School ranks worse than 89.1% of high schools in Colorado. It also ranks 24th among 36 ranked high schools in the School District No. 1. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 11.62. (See more...)
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The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at John F Kennedy High School who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.
Help
The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.
Help
Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.
Student Body
Help
Compare Details John F Kennedy High School has the largest high school student body size in the School District No. 1.  (See more...)
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at John F Kennedy High School is $20,473, which is the 18th highest among 36 high schools in the School District No. 1.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

John F Kennedy High School:

SchoolDigger ranks John F Kennedy High School 311th of 349 Colorado public high schools. (See John F Kennedy High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


English Language Learner students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
Hispanic students:
White students:


School District No. 1:

SchoolDigger ranks School District No. 1 78th of 116 Colorado school districts. (See district ranking list.)


What do you think?

Your rating for John F Kennedy High School?

Rank History for John F Kennedy High School

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Compare

Rank History for all students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2004 12.77 251st 279 10.0%
2005 9.11 254th 280 9.3%
2006 13.06 255th 286 10.8%
2007 11.56 264th 298 11.4%
2008 18.96 249th 301 17.3%
2009 26.63 241st 310 22.3%
2010 26.71 247th 327 24.5%
2011 26.30 255th 337 24.3%
2012 19.30 267th 334 20.1%
2013 22.88 265th 349 24.1%
2014 26.28 281st 369 23.8%
2015 24.05 222nd 292 24.0%
2016 10.28 241st 255 5.5%
2017 16.41 212th 256 17.2%
2018 17.48 305th 388 21.4%
2019 19.48 318th 411 22.6%
2021 2.26 206th 210 1.9%
2022 1.80 216th 221 2.3%
2023 12.22 306th 349 12.3%
2024 11.62 311th 349 10.9%
See the entire list of Colorado High School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 44.72 18th 36 50.0%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 30.14 138th 188 26.6%
2022 20.62 171st 203 15.8%
2023 22.38 165th 200 17.5%
2024 17.85 180th 211 14.7%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 10.61 215th 239 10.0%
2022 8.94 230th 257 10.5%
2023 10.93 230th 254 9.4%
2024 9.68 230th 257 10.5%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Gifted and Talented students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 0.17 116th 118 1.7%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for Gifted and Talented Students!

Rank History for Male students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 10.56 211th 240 12.1%
2022 8.87 229th 253 9.5%
2023 10.74 226th 252 10.3%
2024 11.87 226th 256 11.7%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 16.63 158th 181 12.7%
2022 12.54 187th 205 8.8%
2023 17.62 167th 198 15.7%
2024 12.35 179th 199 10.1%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at John F Kennedy High School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CO State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 7.28 209th 225 7.1%
2022 6.45 217th 228 4.8%
2023 4.37 226th 234 3.4%
2024 8.93 211th 229 7.9%
See the entire list of Best Colorado High Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Colorado Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

John F Kennedy High School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
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Data source: Colorado Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 1)
0%

0%

0%

0%

100%

  

Reviews:
by a citizen
Friday, April 30, 2010

Open Quote John F Kennedy has made some minor improvements over the last few years. It has implemented several higher education programs such as IB and Avid. Sadly the morals and ethics of students within the school have declined over the years. The name John F Kennedy stands for something completely different than what is portrayed by the student body at this school. What happened to honesty, integrity, pride, morals and ethics? This is something that the staff really BOASTS about during student orientations right? Maybe that is something just to get the enrollment numbers up to get that good old funding from Uncle Sam. As a citizen in the area I have found it disheartening to see how much toxicity has been bred in the school. Students tagging on the walls inside and outside the school, homes in the neighborhood being vandalized, theft of high priced items from student lockers, theft of money from athletic fundraisers....need you hear more? I don't know what is more frustrating, the fact that the school has this "wonderful" security system with security cameras, school resource officers, and deans that administer discipline. Wow with all that money going out for this where is the security really at? Could it be in the steady paycheck that comes home at the end of the month? To make a long story short...your child can succeed at Kennedy with a lot of parental guidance and involvement, just make sure to send them to school looking like they are from a very low income family so those whom the staff deem as "less fortunate" will find someone else to steal from and prey on. Less fortunate individuals would be those whose parents did not take the time to teach them morals, ethics,values, honor, integrity, and self worth.
Sincerely,
Disappointed tax payer who sees where our future is headed. Close Quote



Enrollment information for John F Kennedy High School

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 568 147 38 587 11 n/a n/a 0 1351
1989 524 138 38 562 7 n/a n/a 0 1269
1990 511 127 36 582 13 n/a n/a 0 1269
1991 487 115 42 584 15 n/a n/a 0 1243
1992 498 92 34 623 8 n/a n/a 0 1255
1993 494 89 35 693 17 n/a n/a 0 1328
1994 479 75 39 726 21 n/a n/a 0 1340
1995 517 79 56 773 16 n/a n/a 0 1441
1996 517 79 56 773 16 n/a n/a 0 1441
1997 583 60 62 871 16 n/a n/a 0 1592
1998 676 49 86 806 16 n/a n/a 0 1633
1999 662 47 114 835 21 n/a n/a 0 1679
2000 647 44 122 811 28 n/a n/a 0 1652
2001 635 52 132 811 30 n/a n/a 0 1660
2002 609 34 108 834 23 n/a n/a 0 1608
2003 609 34 108 834 23 n/a n/a 0 1608
2004 533 41 97 867 26 n/a n/a 0 1564
2005 471 27 88 947 23 n/a n/a 0 1556
2006 394 34 77 981 24 n/a n/a 0 1510
2007 332 42 74 989 30 n/a n/a 0 1467
2008 318 27 72 927 29 n/a n/a 0 1373
2009 288 29 74 835 26 n/a n/a 0 1252
2010 267 18 78 735 23 n/a n/a 0 1121
2011 231 21 85 745 16 6 21 0 1125
2012 213 28 93 826 15 3 19 0 1197
2013 188 30 105 865 16 5 18 0 1227
2014 182 32 114 897 12 5 18 0 1260
2015 166 35 110 913 9 7 17 0 1257
2016 147 30 106 887 11 5 17 0 1203
2017 124 31 98 848 5 3 18 0 1127
2018 110 31 75 828 8 3 15 0 1070
2019 101 21 67 732 15 1 14 0 951
2020 87 26 62 729 14 1 7 0 926
2021 81 27 40 707 16 1 12 0 884
2022 86 31 39 722 12 1 17 0 908
2023 79 24 45 617 7 0 17 0 789

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at John F Kennedy High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1351 82.8 16.3 n/a
1989 1269 88.7 14.3 26.1
1990 1269 90.1 14.0 28.1
1991 1243 95.8 12.9 25.3
1992 1255 87.5 14.3 27.1
1993 1328 79.6 16.7 32.5
1994 1340 81.1 16.5 32.9
1995 1441 71.0 20.3 26.9
1996 1441 71.0 20.3 26.9
1997 1592 79.3 20.1 36.3
1998 1633 84.3 19.4 29.4
1999 1679 81.7 20.6 25.3
2000 1652 86.3 19.1 33.3
2001 1660 88.5 18.8 32.4
2002 1608 87.7 18.3 30.9
2003 1608 87.7 18.3 30.9
2004 1564 80.0 19.6 37.5
2005 1556 76.0 20.5 37.6
2006 1510 77.7 19.4 45.9
2007 1467 74.4 19.7 52.7
2008 1373 72.6 18.9 45.6
2009 1252 72.8 17.2 48.7
2010 1121 65.0 17.2 61.5
2011 1125 58.6 19.1 66.3
2012 1197 61.0 19.6 68.9
2013 1227 69.7 17.5 71.6
2014 1260 66.7 18.8 73
2015 1257 68.0 18.4 76.7
2016 1203 70.0 17.1 75.1
2017 1127 72.7 15.5 75.2
2018 1070 68.2 15.6 76.8
2019 951 60.8 15.6 75.1
2020 926 57.6 16.0 75.2
2021 884 61.3 14.4 73.2
2022 908 60.1 15.0 71.3
2023 789 63.0 12.5 77.9

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio John F Kennedy High School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1351 82.8 16.3 n/a
1989 1269 88.7 14.3 26.1
1990 1269 90.1 14.0 28.1
1991 1243 95.8 12.9 25.3
1992 1255 87.5 14.3 27.1
1993 1328 79.6 16.7 32.5
1994 1340 81.1 16.5 32.9
1995 1441 71.0 20.3 26.9
1996 1441 71.0 20.3 26.9
1997 1592 79.3 20.1 36.3
1998 1633 84.3 19.4 29.4
1999 1679 81.7 20.6 25.3
2000 1652 86.3 19.1 33.3
2001 1660 88.5 18.8 32.4
2002 1608 87.7 18.3 30.9
2003 1608 87.7 18.3 30.9
2004 1564 80.0 19.6 37.5
2005 1556 76.0 20.5 37.6
2006 1510 77.7 19.4 45.9
2007 1467 74.4 19.7 52.7
2008 1373 72.6 18.9 45.6
2009 1252 72.8 17.2 48.7
2010 1121 65.0 17.2 61.5
2011 1125 58.6 19.1 66.3
2012 1197 61.0 19.6 68.9
2013 1227 69.7 17.5 71.6
2014 1260 66.7 18.8 73
2015 1257 68.0 18.4 76.7
2016 1203 70.0 17.1 75.1
2017 1127 72.7 15.5 75.2
2018 1070 68.2 15.6 76.8
2019 951 60.8 15.6 75.1
2020 926 57.6 16.0 75.2
2021 884 61.3 14.4 73.2
2022 908 60.1 15.0 71.3
2023 789 63.0 12.5 77.9

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for John F Kennedy High School

Help

YearTotal Expenditures Per Pupil
2019 $14,522
2020 $15,223
2021 $16,156
2022 $17,523
2023 $20,473

Data source: Colorado Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on John F Kennedy High School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 318th of 411 High schoolsRanks 306th of 349 High schools
 10.3%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students951789
 17%
African American2124
 14.3%
American Indian157
 53.3%
Asian6745
 32.8%
Hispanic732617
 15.7%
Pacific Islander10
 100%
White10179
 21.8%
Two or More Races1417
 21.4%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients75.1%77.9%
 2.9%


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Frequently Asked Questions about John F Kennedy High School

In the 2022-23 school year, 789 students attended John F Kennedy High School.

John F Kennedy High School ranks in the bottom 10.9% of Colorado high schools.

Students at John F Kennedy High School are 78% Hispanic, 10% White, 6% Asian, 3% African American, 2% Two or more races.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Colorado 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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