For national statistics, visit the National Center for Education Statistics at http://nces.ed.gov/.
The Legislative Research Commission's Office of Education Accountability produces Kentucky District Data Profiles, which can be seen here.
Kentucky's public school system is directed by state statutes and regulations.
*all numbers are for the 2009-10 school year unless otherwise noted
Number of school districts
174 (38 female superintendents; 136 male; 1 minority)
Number of public schools (Does not include dependent districts Ft. Campbell and Ft. Knox, alternative schools or the Kentucky School for the Deaf and Kentucky School for the Blind)
1,233
Elementary -- 669
Elementary/middle -- 77
Middle -- 217
Middle/high -- 20
High -- 202
Elementary/Middle/High -- 12
Preschool -- 36
These figures include two 6th-grade-only and two 9th-grade-only schools.
Although Kentucky does not mandate the use of specific labels for schools, in general, the figures above represent these labels:
· Preschool – pre-kindergarten, including Head Start
· Elementary – any combination of grades lower than and through 6th
· Elementary/Middle – any combination of grades lower than 6th and through 8th
· Middle – any combination of grades 6 through 8
· Middle/High – any combination of grades lower than 8th and through 12th
· High – any combination of grades 9 through 12
Number of public school teachers (actual headcount)
43,767 (White -- 96%; Minority -- 4%; Male -- 22%; Female -- 78%)
Number of public school students
647,827 [2010-11]
Ethnicity of public school students
White - 82.1%
African American - 10.7%
Hispanic - 3.8%
Asian - 1.4%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander - less than 1%
Native American - less than 1%
Other - 1.8%
Length of school year
187 days (includes 177 days of instruction; 4 days of professional development; 4 holidays; 2 planning days)
Number of employed certified staff, minus teachers (actual headcount)
7,965
Average teacher salary
$50,428
Number of teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
2,449 (5.6% of the total teaching force)
Kentucky's rank in the number of new nationally certified teachers
11th nationwide [2011]
Number of teacher interns
2,391 [2010-11]
Number of principal interns
0 (Program was not funded in the current biennium.)
Total number who hold Kentucky-issued certifications
142,399 (excludes conditional, adjunct, emergency and temporary certificates, as well as statements of eligibility)
NOTE: Number not comparable to previous years due to a change in the data included.
Number of classified staff (actual head count)
41,794
Average per-pupil current expense spending (excludes debt service, facilities and fund transfers)
$9,246 [FY 2011]
Total SEEK budget
$2.9 billion [FY 2013]
Total P-12 state education budget
$4.6 billion [FY 2013]
Total P-12 federal education revenue
$1.129 billion [FY 2011]
Total P-12 local education revenue
$2.202 billion [FY 2011]
Number of local school board seats
872 (Five for each district; Jefferson County has seven because of its size.)
Gender breakdown of local school board members
Male - 517 (59%) Female - 351 (40%)
Racial breakdown of local school board members
White - 818 (94%) Non-White - 35 (4%) Not reported - 19 (2%)
Number of schools served by councils
1,177 (21 granted exemptions -- 7 because of accountability status; 14 in one-school districts)
NOTE: 703 KAR 5:040 mandates that schools classified as "A1" schools are eligible for SBDM councils. A1 schools do not include preschools, alternative schools, vocational-technical or special education schools.
Number of alternative SBDM models
18 (This number declined from the previous year due to councils recinding their alternative models and returning to the traditional model.)
Parents serving on SBDM councils
2,481
State dropout rate
3.19% [2009-10]
State retention rate
2.36% [2009-10]
State attendance rate
94.05% [2009-10]
State graduation rate
76.68% [2009-10]
(Averaged Freshman Graduation rate; not comparable with prior years due to a change in calculation.)
Percentage of high school graduates attending college, vocational/technical schools, entering the military, employed or a combination of the above (successful transition rate) [2008-09]
94.37%
Pre-kindergarten (preschool) children enrolled in state‑funded programs
25,119 (includes children who meet eligibility criteria and children served through district funds or tuition)
Number of students enrolled in Kentucky Head Start programs
14,665
Pre-kindergarten state budget
$71.3 million [FY 2013]
Types of kindergarten programs offered by school districts
Full day - 161
Half day - 8
Both - 5
Percent of individuals eligible for free or reduced-price meals in public schools (includes K-12 students; preschool/Head Start students; some adults who qualify through the National School Lunch Program)
56% [as of October 2010]
Number of exceptional children ages 3-5
17,963 [as of December 2010]
Number of exceptional children ages 6-21
84,407 [as of December 2010]
Number of students qualifying for Gifted & Talented services
97,770 [2010-11]
Primary Talent Pool (K-3): 21,301
Formal ID (4-12): 76,469
Gifted & Talented state budget
$6.6 million [FY 2013]
Students taking Advanced Placement (AP) exams
23,507
AP exams given
37,923
Number of exams with scores of 3 or higher
22,649 (59.72%)
Number of public schools operating federal Title I programs
870
Number of public schools operating schoolwide Title I programs (those that serve all students in a school)
846
Number of Title I targeted assistance programs
24
Title I, Part A funding
$223.4 million [FY 2011]
Title III funding for immigrant services
$151,578
Districts receiving Title III immigrant funding
5
Students receiving Title III-funded immigrant services
552
Title III funding for limited English proficiency (LEP) services
$3.5 million
Districts receiving Title III LEP funding
Not yet determined
Students receiving Title III-funded LEP services
Not yet determined
State funding for LEP students
$5.9 million
Number of students qualifying for state-funded LEP services
15,720
Languages, other than English, spoken at home by students with limited English proficiency
Total -- 116
Spanish (57%)
Arabic (4%)
Bosnian (2%)
Japanese (2%)
Mandarin Chinese (2%)
Mai Mai (2%)
Others (approximately 31%)
Students to modern high-performance computers ratio
2.56-1 [as of December 2011]
Teachers to modern high-performance computers ratio
0.84-1 [as of December 2011]
Percentage of networked schools with Internet access. e-mail and direct dial-in/out telephone access
100% (all 174 district offices have access to e‑mail and Internet)
Percentage of Intelligent Classrooms (classrooms having components of an interactive, collaborative learning environment)
94%
Students with computers at home
78.8% (72.8% with Internet access)
Teachers with computers at home
95.4% (92.4% with Internet access)
Number of students accessing the technology enabled Individual Learning Plan (ILP)
More than 337,000 accounts created for students in grades 6-12 (88% updated or completed annually)
Amount of federal e-Rate funding available to Kentucky school districts for technology in FY08
$21.4 million [FY 2011]
Number of family resource/youth services centers
819 (420 family resource; 269 youth services; 129 combined)
Number of schools served by FRYSCs
1,195
Number of students served by FRYSCs
621,630
Number of students served in extended school services programs during the school year (not including summer programs)
109,459
Funds allocated for ESS programs
$12.3 million [FY 2013]
Number of Community Education directors
98
Number of school districts served by Community Education programs
144
Number of school buses
10,058
Number of licensed school bus drivers
11,252
Number of homeschools
10,252 [2010-11]
Number of homeschooled students
16,493 [2010-11]