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Fort Thomas, Kentucky - 5 schools
An equity score of 14/100 ranks Fort Thomas Independent #166 of 171 districts in Kentucky (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,303 per pupil, Fort Thomas Independent ranks #117 of 171 Kentucky districts by per-pupil spending (Kentucky districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,127
Total Enrollment
5
Schools
$12,303
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Fort Thomas Independent operates 5 public schools serving 3,127 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Kentucky. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 combined, 1 high, 1 middle, 1 elementary schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Campbell County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,303 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 171 Kentucky districts by per-pupil spending. See how Kentucky compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 44.9% local, 52.9% state, and 2.2% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 14/100, ranked #166 of 171 in Kentucky against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 5 schools offering Advanced Placement (24 AP courses district-wide), a 409.5:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 4.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 89.0% White, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.4% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Moyer Elementary School, with a diversity index of 26.3/100.
Its largest campus is Highlands High School, enrolling 1,019 students (32% of the district's total enrollment).
Highlands High School accounts for 32.1% of all Fort Thomas Independent student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Fort Thomas Independent-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Fort Thomas Independent school enrollment varies 2.4× across entities
Fort Thomas Independent school enrollment ranges from 425 students (lowest) to 1,019 students (highest), a spread of 594 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Fort Thomas Independent student-counselor ratio is 410:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Fort Thomas Independent chronic absenteeism rate is 4.8% — well below typical (typically associated with unusually small scale or exceptionally high per-unit investment)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far below typical often correlate with unusually small scale or population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se — worth checking whether the underlying denominator is itself an outlier.
Fort Thomas Independent has 5 schools, including 1 high, 1 middle, 2 combined, 1 elementary. Total enrollment is 3,127 students.
How much does Fort Thomas Independent spend per student?
Fort Thomas Independent spends $12,303 per student. The district has an equity score of 14/100, ranking #166 in Kentucky.
What is the demographic composition of Fort Thomas Independent?
Fort Thomas Independent students are 89.0% White, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.4% African American, 1.2% Asian, averaged across 5 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Fort Thomas Independent?
Fort Thomas Independent has an equity score of 14/100, ranking #166 out of 171 districts in Kentucky.