Fayette Superintendent Bill Bradford said the top line numbers show the district not only keeping pace with but exceeding state averages.
"You will see that in Fayette County public schools at all three levels, elementary, middle, and high, our students are outperforming the state as it relates to the state's assessment and accountability system," he said during a press briefing.
According to the statewide report card, 81 percent of Fayette schools met or outpaced academic standards and half earned a high or very high rating. At the same time, schools previously identified as low performing in 2025 showed some improvements.
Still, 10 schools were tagged as needing additional targeted support or intervention, abbreviated ATSI, in a pair of student subgroups, English learners and students with disabilities. Bradford said Fayette County's plan to get ATSI schools off that list is identical to the strategies that successfully helped other lower performing schools improve.
"There are very specific evidence-based strategies and resources that we already have within our possession that we're already executing at each of those 10 campuses to help advise teachers and leaders as to how can we monitor data across the continuum of the school year to address those challenges and really close those achievement gaps," he said.
The encouraging numbers come despite ongoing financial troubles with the district facing a $5.4 million deficit and a forthcoming state audit. Bradford said continuous "needs assessments" have helped keep the district on track even as it grapples with fluctuating finances.