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Shelbyville, Kentucky - 13 schools
An equity score of 28/100 ranks Shelby County #145 of 171 districts in Kentucky (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,646 per pupil, Shelby County ranks #99 of 171 Kentucky districts by per-pupil spending (Kentucky districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
6,935
Total Enrollment
13
Schools
$12,646
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Shelby County operates 13 public schools serving 6,935 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Kentucky. The school portfolio breaks down into 7 elementary, 2 high, 2 middle, 2 combined schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Shelby County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,646 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 39.0% local, 44.0% state, and 16.9% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 28/100, ranked #145 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 2 of 13 schools offering Advanced Placement (23 AP courses district-wide), a 505.7:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 17.7% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 58.9% White, 26.4% Hispanic or Latino, 6.6% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Ascension Academy, with a diversity index of 63.9/100.
Its largest campus is Martha Layne Collins High School, enrolling 1,157 students (17% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Ascension Academy, at 32 students, a 36x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Martha Layne Collins High School accounts for 16.7% of all Shelby County student enrollment
That concentration means Shelby County-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.
Shelby County school enrollment varies 36× across entities
Shelby County school enrollment ranges from 32 students (lowest) to 1,157 students (highest), a spread of 1,125 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity, the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Shelby County has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 52.2% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Shelby County student-counselor ratio is 506:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Shelby County chronic absenteeism rate is 17.7% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
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 Variation between sub-units within Shelby County is typically wider than the Shelby County-aggregate figure suggests.
Shelby County has 13 schools, including 2 high, 7 elementary, 2 middle, 2 combined. Total enrollment is 6,935 students.
How much does Shelby County spend per student?
Shelby County spends $12,646 per student. The district has an equity score of 28/100, ranking #145 in Kentucky.
What is the demographic composition of Shelby County?
Shelby County students are 58.9% White, 26.4% Hispanic or Latino, 6.6% African American, 0.6% Asian, averaged across 13 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Shelby County?
Shelby County has an equity score of 28/100, ranking #145 out of 171 districts in Kentucky.