SE Kentucky News

There were 791 students enrolled in Owsley County School District in the 2023-24 school year, 3.2% less than the previous year, according to the Kentucky Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed in the 2023-24 school year, 52.2% of them were boys, and 47.8% were girls.

Data also showed that most of the students were white, making up 96.1% of the Owsley County School District's total enrollment.

Owsley County School District roughly covers two schools within Owsley County and has a main office in Booneville.

Among those schools, Owsley County Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of 452 students in the 2023-24 school year.

Despite ongoing efforts to address educational disparities, Kentucky's achievement gaps persist. In the 2024 eighth-grade reading assessments, for example, Black students scored 24 points lower than their white peers, while Hispanic students were 19 points behind. In mathematics, the gaps were even more pronounced: Black students lagged by 29 points and Hispanic students by 19 points compared to white students. These disparities have remained relatively unchanged since 2000, highlighting the need for continued focus on equity in education.

Between 2019 and 2023, there was an increase of 260% in the number of available teaching posts in Kentucky schools. This often leads to larger class sizes, combining programs, and retaining staff despite potential negative impacts on teacher working conditions.

School Name	Total Enrollment in 2022-23	Total Enrollment in 2023-24	% change
Owsley County Elementary School	426	452	6.1%
Owsley County High School	391	339	-13.3%