North Bluegrass News

Bourbon County High School had the highest enrollment among Bourbon County schools, welcoming 874 students during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Kentucky Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed in the 2023-24 school year, 51.8% of them were girls, and 48.2% were boys.

Data also showed that the majority of students were white, making up 73.8% of Bourbon County High School's total enrollment.

Among the 10 schools in Bourbon County, Bourbon County Middle School ranked second in enrollment numbers with 620 students, while Bourbon Central Elementary School welcomed 512 students and ranked third in the 2023-24 school year.

Bourbon County High School is part of Bourbon County School District, which roughly covers schools within Bourbon County and has a main office in Paris.

In the previous school year, Bourbon County High School also had the highest number of students among Bourbon County schools.

According to the Kentucky Department of Education, 13% of teacher vacancies in the state remained unfilled throughout the 2023-24 school year.

District leaders also raised concerns about applicant quality, with 49% saying candidates were similar to the previous year and 42% saying they were of lower quality.

Currently, after adjusting for inflation, the average teacher salary in Kentucky is nearly 20% lower than in 2008. State data shows teachers earn about $14,000 less in real terms.

School name	City	Total School Enrollment
Bourbon County High School	Paris	874
Bourbon County Middle School	Paris	620
Bourbon Central Elementary School	Paris	512
Cane Ridge Elementary School	Paris	490
Paris Elementary School	Paris	368
Paris High School	Paris	254
Bourbon County Preschool Headstart	Paris	224
Paris Middle School	Paris	175
North Middletown Elementary School	North Middletown	148
Paris Preschool Center	Paris	96