Kentucky · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best-Resourced School Districts in Kentucky

Top 50 districts ranked by average school quality score, based on student-teacher ratios, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.

Compiled by PlainSchools, Education-data publisher · August 11, 2026

The ranking in one line

Fulton County in Hickman leads Kentucky's districts with an average school quality score of 58.7/100 across 3 schools.

58.7/100
top district score (grade C): 3
schools in Fulton County: 640
students in the top district: 51/100
average across the top 50

#	District	Grade	Students	Schools	Avg S:T	Per-Pupil $	Avg Quality
1	Fulton CountyHickman	C	640	3	13.5:1	$14,780	58.7
2	Elizabethtown IndependentElizabethtown	C	2,465	7	13.2:1	$13,110	56.9
3	Mclean CountyCalhoun	C	1,405	6	13.3:1	$14,209	56.2
4	Hancock CountyHawesville	C	1,524	5	12.5:1	$16,011	56
5	Hickman CountyClinton	C	723	2	13.5:1	$14,483	56
6	Carlisle CountyBardwell	C	759	3	14.1:1	$13,515	55
7	Bellevue IndependentBellevue	C-	639	2	11.6:1	$16,232	54.5
8	Crittenden CountyMarion	C-	1,363	4	10.9:1	$13,015	54
9	Graves CountyMayfield	C-	3,977	10	17.4:1	$12,902	53.2
10	Marshall CountyBenton	C-	4,495	11	16.2:1	$14,559	53
11	Fort Thomas IndependentFort Thomas	C-	3,127	5	16.9:1	$12,975	53
12	Bowling Green IndependentBowling Green	C-	4,424	9	15.1:1	$14,125	52.7
13	Campbell CountyAlexandria	C-	5,195	8	15.3:1	$14,133	52.3
14	Franklin CountyFrankfort	C-	6,126	14	13.5:1	$15,057	52.2
15	Danville IndependentDanville	C-	1,836	6	12.7:1	$16,364	51.8
16	Boone CountyFlorence	C-	20,200	27	15.1:1	$13,925	51.8
17	Barren CountyGlasgow	C-	5,224	11	14.9:1	$13,580	51.6
18	Erlanger-Elsmere IndependentErlanger	C-	2,392	8	14:1	$14,540	51.5
19	Harrison CountyCynthiana	C-	2,896	7	15.9:1	$12,974	51.3
20	Murray IndependentMurray	C-	1,849	4	15.2:1	$15,699	51.3
21	Fairview IndependentAshland	C-	582	2	11.3:1	$16,732	51
22	Woodford CountyVersailles	C-	4,010	7	15:1	$13,439	50.9
23	Marion CountyLebanon	C-	3,256	8	14.8:1	$13,327	50.8
24	Covington IndependentCovington	C-	3,665	10	12.8:1	$16,918	50.7
25	Boyle CountyDanville	C-	2,937	5	16.5:1	$13,539	50.4
26	Oldham CountyBuckner	C-	12,367	18	15:1	$13,019	50.3
27	Calloway CountyMurray	C-	3,134	8	13.6:1	$13,190	50.3
28	Daviess CountyOwensboro	C-	11,164	23	14.4:1	$13,767	50
29	Glasgow IndependentGlasgow	D	2,490	6	20.9:1	$13,265	49.8
30	Raceland-Worthington IndependentRaceland	D	1,132	5	13.1:1	$13,225	49.8
31	Livingston CountySmithland	D	1,074	4	14.4:1	$16,842	49.8
32	Lincoln CountyStanford	D	3,416	7	12.6:1	$14,375	49.7
33	Lyon CountyEddyville	D	998	3	18:1	$12,723	49.7
34	Henry CountyNew Castle	D	2,014	6	16.2:1	$14,044	49.5
35	Hart CountyMunfordville	D	2,347	6	14.4:1	$14,437	49.3
36	Caverna IndependentCave City	D	647	3	11.9:1	$20,796	49.3
37	Owensboro IndependentOwensboro	D	5,040	10	13.5:1	$16,080	49.3
38	Nelson CountyBardstown	D	4,511	11	14.6:1	$14,451	49
39	Paducah IndependentPaducah	D	3,119	7	14.5:1	$15,048	49
40	Henderson CountyHenderson	D	6,955	13	16.2:1	$13,397	48.8
41	Casey CountyLiberty	D	2,202	5	14.5:1	$14,250	48.8
42	Monroe CountyTompkinsville	D	1,788	5	14.7:1	$16,268	48.8
43	Kenton CountyFort Wright	D	14,066	18	16.9:1	$12,155	48.6
44	Trigg CountyCadiz	D	1,964	5	14.2:1	$14,010	48.2
45	Breckinridge CountyHardinsburg	D	2,748	6	15.5:1	$13,209	48.2
46	Logan CountyRussellville	D	3,430	8	14.6:1	$12,613	48
47	Beechwood IndependentFort Mitchell	D	1,501	3	16:1	$12,233	48
48	Butler CountyMorgantown	D	2,195	5	13.7:1	$13,805	47.8
49	Dayton IndependentDayton	D	859	2	11.9:1	$16,758	47.5
50	Greenup CountyGreenup	D	2,634	7	13.1:1	$14,133	47.4

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best school districts in Kentucky? ▼

The top-ranked district in Kentucky is Fulton County in Hickman with 640 students across 3 schools. Average quality score: 58.7/100. Rankings are based on average school quality scores from NCES data.

How are district rankings calculated? ▼

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES data: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be ranked.

How many school districts are in Kentucky? ▼

Kentucky has 50+ school districts serving 651,902 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 15.2:1.

Explore More for Kentucky

All Schools → Best Schools → Highest Spending → Funding Equity → Absenteeism Data →

Methodology

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 metrics: student-teacher ratio, school counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism rates. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be included. This measures school-level resources, not test scores. Higher average scores indicate districts where schools generally have smaller classes, better counselor access, and lower absenteeism.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.