Kentucky Department of Education

 

Kentucky Education Facts

Last Updated on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 5:02 AM

Basic statistical information about Kentucky's schools, including number of schools, numbers of teachers and students, statewide education funding, etc.

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 (36 female superintendents; 138 male; 2 minorities)

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)

1,221

Elementary -- 684
Middle -- 217
Elementary/middle -- 57
Middle/high -- 17
High -- 202
Preschool-12 -- 11
Preschool -- 29
6th Grade -- 2
9th Grade -- 2

Number of public school teachers (actual headcount)    

44,023 (White -- 95.5%; Minority -- 4.3%; Male -- 21%; Female -- 79%)

Number of public school students

644,963 

Ethnicity of public school students

White - 82.5%
African American - 10.6%
Hispanic - 3.1%
Asian - 1%
Native American - less than 1%
Other - 2.2%

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)              

7,906

Average teacher salary           

$49,332

Number of teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards

2,156 (4.9% of the total teaching force)

Kentucky's rank in the number of new nationally certified teachers

12th nationwide [2010]

Number of teacher interns [2010-11]

2,543

Number of principal interns

0 (Program was not funded in the current biennium.)

Total number who hold Kentucky-issued certifications

110,824 (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)  

48,791

Average per-pupil current expense spending (excludes debt service, facilities and fund transfers)     

$9,144 [FY 2010]

Total SEEK budget

$2.908 billion [FY 2011]         

Total P-12 state education budget

$4.875 billion [FY 2011]

Total P-12 federal education revenue       

$1.099 billion [FY 2010]
(Includes ARRA funding.)

Total P-12 local education revenue       

$2.108 billion [FY 2010]

Number of local school board seats

873 (Five for each district; Jefferson County has seven because of its size; Webster County has six on a temporary basis because of the merger of Providence Independent.)

Gender breakdown of local school board members     

Male - 520 (60%) Female - 344 (40%)

 

Racial breakdown of local school board members     

White - 817 (95%) Non-White - 36 (4%) Not reported - 11 (1%)

Number of schools served by councils

1,163 (20 granted exemptions -- 7 because of test scores; 13 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          

63

Parents involved in SBDM committees

12,044

State dropout rate [2008-09]

2.89%

State retention rate [2008-09]                

2.75%

State attendance rate [2008-09]                

94.18%

State graduation rate [2008-09]

83.91%

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    

25,721 (includes children who meet eligibility criteria and children served through district funds or tuition)

Number of students enrolled in Kentucky Head Start programs

17,808

Pre-kindergarten state budget         

$72.5 million [FY 2011]

Types of kindergarten programs offered by school districts [2010-11]

Full day - 160
Half day - 11
Both - 3

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)

55% [as of October 2009]

Number of exceptional children ages 3-5       

18,865 [as of December 2009]

Number of exceptional children ages 6-21     

87,181 [as of December 2009]

Number of students qualifying for Gifted & Talented services

111,275Primary Talent Pool (K-3): 24,045
Formal ID (4-12) 87,230

Gifted & Talented state budget [FY 2011]

$6.9 million

Number of public schools operating federal Title I programs [2010-11]

873

Number of public schools operating schoolwide Title I programs (those that serve all students in a school) [2010-11]

822

Number of Title I targeted assistance programs

51

Title I, Part A funding [FY 2010]

$226.5 million

Title III funding for immigrant services [2010-11]

$359,430

 

Districts receiving Title III immigrant funding [2010-11]

 

10

 

Students receiving Title III-funded immigrant services

 

5,875
NOTE: Number not comparable to previous years due to preschool immigrant students no longer included in count per USDOE.

 

Title III funding for limited English proficiency (LEP) services [2010-11]

 

$3 million

 

Districts receiving Title III LEP funding

 

62 (includes 28 individual sub-grantee districts and 34 districts that are members of consortia)

 

Students receiving Title III-funded LEP services [2010-11]

 

14,722

State funding for LEP students [2010-11]
 

$5.7 million

 

Number of students qualifying for state-funded LEP services [2010-11]

 

15,501 

NOTE: The criteria for eligibility for federal and state services differs. 

Languages, other than English, spoken at home by students with limited English proficiency

Total -- 110

Spanish (60%)

Arabic (3%)

Japanese (3%)
Mandarin Chinese (3%)

Bosnian (3%)

Others (approximately 31%)

 

Students to modern high-performance computers ratio              

2.68-1 (goal was 6-1)

Teachers to modern high-performance computers ratio              

0.85-1 (goal is 1-1)

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)

95.5%

Students with computers at home

77.9% (72.2% with Internet access)

Teachers with computers at home

94.2% (91.7% 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 (85% updated or completed annually)

Amount of federal e-Rate funding available to Kentucky school districts for technology in FY08

$15 million [FY 2010]

Number of students enrolled in the Kentucky Virtual High School

1,227 (full online enrollment) [fall 2010]
2,764 (blended courses) [fall 2010]
6,408 (AP exam review) [spring 2010]
3,400 (students/adults enrolled in communities) [fall 2010]

Number of family resource/youth services centers         

818 (420 family resource; 269 youth services; 129 combined)

Number of schools served by FRYSCs       

1,170

Number of students served by FRYSCs       

619,541

Number of students served in extended school services programs during the school year (not including summer programs)

108,320

Funds allocated for ESS programs

$12.7 million [FY 2011]

Number of Community Education directors      

100

Number of school districts served by Community Education programs    

148

Number of school buses

10,075 (8,130 for daily use; 1,945 spare or activity buses)

Number of licensed school bus drivers (full-time equivalent)

11,009

Number of homeschools [2010-11]                     

10,252

Number of homeschooled students [2010-11]

16,493

For more information contact:

Lisa Gross
500 Mero Street, 6th Floor CPT
Frankfort, KY 40601
Phone: 502-564-2000 x4604
lisa.gross@education.ky.gov