For national statistics, visit the National Center for Education Statistics at http://nces.ed.gov/.
Kentucky's public school system is directed by state statutes and regulations.
*all numbers are for the 2007-08 school year unless otherwise noted
Number of school districts
174 (33 female superintendents; 141 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)
1,249
Elementary -- 757
Middle -- 221
Elementary/middle -- 3
HIgh -- 225
Preschool-12 -- 7
Preschool -- 33
6th Grade -- 1
9th Grade -- 2
Number of public school teachers (actual headcount)
43,788 (White -- 95.6%; Minority -- 4.5%; Male -- 21%; Female -- 79%)
Number of public school students
671,466
Ethnicity of public school students
White - 84%
African American - 10.6%
Hispanic - 2.6%
Asian - 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
$46,417
Number of teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
1,608 (3.9 percent of the total teaching force)
Kentucky's rank in the number of new nationally certified teachers
11th nationwide [2008]
Number of teacher interns
3,142
Number of principal interns
185
Total number who hold Kentucky-issued certifications
142,839 (excludes conditional, adjunct, emergency and temporary certificates, as well as statements of eligibility)
Number of classified staff (actual head count)
48,785
Average per-pupil current expense spending (excludes debt service, facilities and fund transfers)
$8,839 [2007-08]
Total SEEK budget
$2.958 billion [FY 2009]
Total P-12 state education revenue
$4.578 billion [FY 2009]
Total P-12 federal education revenue
$701 million
Total P-12 local education revenue
$2.038 billion
Number of local school board seats
873 (5 for each district; Jefferson County has 7 because of its size; Webster County has 7 on a temporary basis because of the merger of Providence Independent.)
Gender breakdown of local school board members
Male - 538 (62%) Female - 323 (38%) Not Reported - 12 (less than 1%)
Racial breakdown of local school board members
White - 810 (93%) Non-White - 35 (4%) Not reported - 28 (3%)
Number of schools served by councils
1,174 (22 granted exemptions -- 10 because of test scores; 12 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
61
Parents involved in SBDM committees
10,551
State dropout rate
3.3% [2007-08]
State retention rate
2.55% [2007-08]
State attendance rate
94.17% [2007-08]
State graduation rate
84.52% [2007-08]
Percentage of high school graduates attending college, vocational/technical schools, entering the military, employed or a combination of the above (successful transition rate)
95.27% [2007-08]
Pre-kindergarten (preschool) children enrolled in state‑funded programs
24,251 (includes children who meet eligibility criteria and children served through district funds or tuition)
Number of students enrolled in Kentucky Head Start programs
13,663
Pre-kindergarten state budget
$75.1 million [FY 2009]
Primary program organization
75% - single grades
33% - non-graded P1-P4
18% - dual graded
4% - non-graded P2-P4 and graded P1
Types of kindergarten programs offered by school districts
Full day - 145
Half day - 11
Both - 18
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)
54%
Number of exceptional children ages 3-5
20,591 [as of December 2007]
Number of exceptional children ages 6-21
88,596 [as of December 2007]
Number of students qualifying for Gifted & Talented services
105,867
Gifted & Talented state budget
$7.1 million [FY 2009]
Number of public schools operating federal Title I programs
758 (Schoolwide -- 710; Targeted Assistance -- 48)
Title I funding
$195.5 million
Title III funding for immigrant services
$262,223
Districts receiving Title III immigrant funding
10
Students receiving Title III immigrant services
4,075
Title III funding for limited English proficiency (LEP) services
$2.4 million
Districts receiving Title III LEP funding
64 (includes 23 individual sub-grantee districts and 41 districts that are members of consortia)
Students receiving Title III LEP services
9,950
State funding for LEP students
$3.9 million [FY 2008]
Number of students qualifying for state-funded LEP services
10,535 (NOTE: the criteria for eligibility for federal and state services differs.)
Languages, other than English, spoken at home by students with limited English proficiency
Spanish (63%)
Japanese (4%)
Bosnian (3%)
Vietnamese (3%)
Arabic (2%)
Mai Mai (2%)
Mandarin Chinese (2%)
Somali (2%)
Others, including Turkish, Korean, Russian and French (approximately 20%)
Students to modern high-performance computers ratio
2.98-1 (goal was 6-1)
Teachers to modern high-performance computers ratio
0.91-1 (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 schools connected to the Kentucky Education Network (KEN), a modern high-speed connection to the Internet
100%
Number of students accessing the technology enabled Individual Learning Plan (ILP)
More than 340,000 accounts created for students in grades 6-12
Percentage of schools utilizing Encyclomedia, an Internet-based comprehensive multi-media learning service
92%
Amount of federal e-Rate funding available to Kentucky school districts for technology in FY08
Up to $27.7 million
Number of students enrolled in the Kentucky Virtual High School
590 (full online enrollment) [fall 2008]
3,450 (blended courses) [fall 2008]
2,893 (AP exam review) [spring 2008]
3,500 (students/adults enrolled in communities) [fall 2008]
Number of Highly Skilled Educators
39 (all assigned)
Number of family resource/youth services centers
820 (420 family resource; 268 youth services; 132 combined)
Number of schools served by FRYSCs
1,163
Number of students served by FRYSCs
615,917
Number of students served in extended school services programs during the school year (not including summer programs)
154,479
Funds allocated for ESS programs
$13.2 million [FY 2009]
Number of Community Education directors
100
Number of school districts served by Community Education programs
145
Number of school buses
9,883
Number of licensed school bus drivers (full-time equivalent)
12,566
Number of homeschools
9,956
Number of homeschooled students
12,875